I'm Sooo Over You
by FeelingThePullCallYourName
Summary: After a hard breakup with Duncan, Courtney finally finds love with Justin 5 years later. But now, Duncan is back and ready to fight to have his princess back. Lot of drama, hard subject and slight humor.
1. Prologue

**I hate myself. That story was supposed to be humoristic and all but, I couldn't stop myself from putting drama. A lot of drama! **

**This is, let's just say, the prologue. I know that is really long for a prologue but I want to make it way longer. **

**Really sensible subject used but there will be slight humor in the next chapters.**

**Check out my other stories!**

**I don't own TDI.**

**Warning: That story contains subjects that might offense, make cry or madden people reading it. No flames will be accepted, but tears will.**

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I'm Sooo Over You

**The Prologue**

Feet nearly brushing the hot fire of the fireplace, her hands in his and those sweet baby blue eyes staring at her with every little piece of perfectness she could look for, it was all flawless. He could touch her, she could feel him, they smiled at each other in that emotion. Those nights like these couldn't be replaced by anything else, and they clearly knew it because they were together. "Thanking God." Would say her mom and his would just let him enjoy this moment. Squeezing in front of the great scene the foyer was projecting beside the pure white snow that was freezing the night outside, she could feel warmth in his strong, tanned arms.

No, that couldn't be Duncan.

And that wasn't.

No need to rub your eyes.

The story is started.

The brunette lifted her head to her wonderful model boyfriend, that gorgeous eyed of Justin. She grinned and shined each time he was looking at him this way. That was way different than it used to be with Duncan. He was a rough guy, the one that never really cared enough to tell her compliments at each five minutes. And he would never try to love her without 'buts'. Justin loved her the way she needed him to. As his princess, not the doll Duncan wanted her to be. And Courtney loved him for some reasons that she didn't even understand.

Then she woke up in bed and the dream, the illusion, shattered. In reality, everything was way different than she was dreaming. She couldn't fight it, as she didn't want to come back into the punk's arms. She never needed a man to straight her up. So she didn't need him to get her out. And she couldn't say she didn't like her life, she just did not understand why she had those bruises.

The place next to her was empty. The sheets covering the mattress were creased, showing there was formerly someone right next to her. Then, no one. The former CIT was just here, touching with the tips of her hand, the sheet of the grayish blue color. It was all quiet in the night, in the vast loft the model and she were sharing. She couldn't ask where her man went, though the ring stuck around her finger proved the contrary. Just thinking of it hurt. And her husband was not there but she knew she preferred to be alone and wait for her death than him coming back. But what she surely did not want was Duncan's pity.

He had cheated on her. Again, with the same girl. She didn't try to figure out what the goth had more than she that he liked, that was an evidence. Gwen gave him sex, Courtney was still a virgin at this period. Gwen liked the same movies and the same music as him, Courtney preferred classic. The goth girl was supportable in a way, Courtney was just a brat. The evidence was logic but unbearable; they didn't belong together. He and Gwen had everything to live in perfect harmony and what was supposed to be fate happened. The night of the prom, instead of Duncan and she having sex for the first time, he and Gwen made it in the back of his car. Courtney had that shocking view when she was looking for him in the parking lot. That was the end of their impossible love.

After Gwen and Duncan left for college in another city (that's what he said), Courtney stayed in Toronto to study laws. As she found education, she also found the true love of her life. Someone that really deserved her and was the perfect boyfriend she was looking for. Justin and Courtney married at the end of university, letting the prep forget about the big unhealed hole Duncan had made and live her life. At least, that what was she thought.

Justin always had the profile of the perfect gentleman. He was a mannequin, really sexy and was amazingly rich. He could get every girl he wanted but his eyes were only fixed on the former CIT. She never paid attention because of… you know. When she came out to become the 3rd wheel in a relationship that was supposed to be hers, he took the occasion to tell her how much she could be better than that. How much she was beautiful and unique. Courtney finally fell for him when she said 'I do' at that fabulous wedding his parents had organized. The model now knew she belonged to him.

For the first year, Justin was an angel. He would drive her to her job everyday, help her with the groceries, kiss her with more passion that he ever had. That was the life the prep always wished to have. They were rich and could have anything they wanted. The thing was, Justin was protective. Of course, every husband would be to their wife but that was becoming really exaggerated. He didn't want her to go out with friends that were boys, he would freak out when she went out with girls too. Courtney felt stuck in his clutches but did not want to leave that perfect man, or even that wealthy lifestyle. She let pass every single day that he would be overly controlling and convince herself it would get better the next day. I would not.

Justin cheated on her with several women. Courtney would ask him what he was doing late at night, he would start to scream and tell her obscenities. She discovered it when he didn't hide it like a secret anymore. He was telling her she was ugly, that she was fat, she did not deserve anything in life. She was just a bitch. His words hurt but she could not fight to love him when he was making her forget the next day by telling her she is the most beautiful woman in the world. She was easily manipulated by her own husband. And then the thing went more wrong.

A night, when Justin came back from work, Courtney was waiting patiently for him in the kitchen. She was mad, really mad. It was passed 11 and he was not home yet. Courtney called him many times but he didn't answer. After hours of worry, Justin finally showed up, a little tipsy. His hair was messy and he looked like if he came back from a dirty party. She started to talk on a soft, but firm voice about her worries on him drinking and driving. For a while, the model was listening but then he was pissed. He got up furiously and made his way to the room. Courtney looked at him, rage in her eyes, and shouted him to come back. Justin turned, his sweetness gone, and practically ran toward her, grabbing both of her wrists, and pinning her brutally on the wall of the kitchen. Her back hurt and her eyes were scared when he yelled.

"Don't fucking tell me what to do!"

Justin backed up, leaving her wrists when she thought he wouldn't do anything else. He then lifted quickly his hand and slapped her across the face so hard that her lip cut and bled. Tears started slipping down her cheeks when he left back toward the room. She sighed. It was so unusual of him to act this way. Justin was a perfect man, that was not himself at all. Even if the pain in her face was saying the contrary, Courtney told herself that was the alcohol effect on him. Tomorrow, he would apologize. She stayed in the kitchen for a while and tried to find hope where there was not.

The next days went slow and normal. Justin was returning to his own self, being lovely and weirdly making her love with more passion. Though, when nights were come, he was bringing another girl at home even if his wife was in the place. At this horrible vision, Courtney preferred to stay later at work, unwilling to see them. But that was the normal life she had usually. Then other weeks passed and Justin did it again. This time, he hit harder at places really painful. Bruises were visible and Courtney had to hide them by wearing ample clothes and more make up. Justin's angst for her kept growing, as his lust for other women kept going. The prep would cry, beg or pray, nothing was working. She couldn't leave. He would find her and kill her. It was like if she was his propriety, like a nasty doll he would bang against the wall every time he had the occasion.

Though, Justin loved her. He said, at each time, that he would not do it again. That that was an accident or would blame it on alcohol. Nevertheless, most of the time he was sober. He was kind of making her feeling possessed by him, in a love way. And he kept telling her he would be alright and that would not happen again. And each time, these promises were faded when he raised his hand on her. Or push her. Or kick her. Or strangle her.

This night, Courtney knew he would not come back at home near her. She always knew that but, as she was saying, Justin was more worth than Duncan was. At least, the model cared enough to tell her he loved her at times. Duncan was not the man of her life; Justin was what she deserved.

A man with a faux-hawk walked on the street leading the Eastside Avenue. The snow was making it difficult to see but he didn't care. All he wished for was a second chance. Breathing deeply, he reminded himself of her smile, of her laugh, of her beauty and her bitchiness. He reminded himself of his beloved princess he had left five long years ago for someone that didn't even deserve him.

Gwen dumped him for that ass of Trent. She said tried to be nice with him by not telling him she was cheating on him with Trent but the punk discovered it by himself. In fact, he also discovered that he had missed something with Courtney. She was the only girl that really loved him, whatever he was doing. Duncan really had regrets about what happened at the prom and wished his princess would forgive that. His only wish was her. Nothing else mattered enough for him.

Before coming back here, he had checked on Bridgette to get her new address. Though she and Courtney had lost contact with each other because of university and stuff, she still knew where the prep lived. Duncan didn't care about that whole girl babble; he just wanted to fix his issue with his ex-girlfriend and the rest would come after. That was simple.

After a long walk toward the place he was heading, Duncan finally lowed in front of a huge building where most of the lights where off. He opened the door leading in, walked in the little hall and punched the little gray button with carved scripture spelling "783C". A loud sound was heard.

"_Hello?"_ A sleepy girl voice responded.

"We need to talk."

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**Real chapter coming in a while. **

**Tell me, do you like?**

**BTW: Just asking; would you want me to write a short French story? Just asking!**

**Review...**


	2. Denial

**Okay, granted, I told you that chapter would be longer but why spoiling a story by adding length if it is already good? Well, that's my reason.**

**Thank you sooo much for the reviews guys, that was really appreciated. I love you soo much! **

**Now here is the real chapter and I dedicate it to all of you that follow that story. I tried to make it not really sucky but I made my best. Next chapter coming someday.**

**For those who read Fallin' for France; I'm sorry to tell you that I'm on a huge writer block for the next chapter. I know how it will end, really, but I have to fill that chapter and I don't know what to say. But promise, I will update sooner as possible!**

**So, read and review.**

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I'm Sooo Over You**

She didn't expect this at all. She would never have even dared wonder about that. That was just impossible. _I must be dreaming_ she thought. Duncan couldn't be standing at her door at 3 a.m. to **talk**. How could he have known where she lived? And how could he dare come here when he dumped her a few years ago? She wondered. And after all, how could that be Duncan for real?

"Who are you?" Her shaky voice asked unsure of what she was supposed to do.

"Duncan. It's Duncan, Courtney."

"I don't know you, what do you want?"She lied.

"Oh please, Princess, just let me in. You know it's me."

"I don't know if I can do that."

"Trust me, I just want to talk."

She held her breath for what seemed like seconds. Courtney just didn't know what to do. That was all helpless. If she let Duncan in, that might be her chance to really know what he wanted. But if Justin discovered there was a man here, she would bleed a lot the next time. And was it worth it? And perhaps her husband wouldn't be back home in the night, maybe he would just come back the next night as usual. That would leave her the time to clean perfectly the house and erase the tape of the surveillance cameras (In a rich man's loft, there are always things to steal so it's better to be safe). Then, to be more like a normal housewife, she would just have to make him dinner perfectly and have sex after. The thought of having sex with him just disgusted her after all he did but she had no choice.

"Courtney?" Duncan's worry voice called her name.

"Is there anyone around you?"The former C.I.T. inquired, knowing her stuff.

"...No..."

"Are you sure?"

"No, Courtney, what's going o―"

"Just come in."She cut off, stopping the conversation by pressing on a button allowing the door to open in the rec. hall.

Duncan pulled the rec. Hall door before walking straight ahead toward the elevator. He didn't care about the whole rich decorations surrounding him in the hall, even if everything seemed to cost a million bucks. He just wanted his princess. The girl that really made him feeling like someone. She surely was bossy, annoying and uptight but he loved her for everything. From her sweetness to her uptight-ness. Without her, the world meant nothing to him; she was the reason his life had a sense. He had regrets not to have understood it before.

The delinquent practically punched the button of the ninth floor and waited a long time in the elevator. It was all quiet and, though he wouldn't admit it, a little creepy. It was really late and, who knew, maybe someone would jump out of the mirror behind him and behead him violently with a knife. Okay, granted that was stupid. Thankfully the elevator slowed down and stopped a few seconds later. The punk stepped out of it and looked for the Prep's apartment.

A few wandering around later, he was standing in front of a metal door. Duncan just knocked once before Courtney quickly opens the door. Her eyes were big, certainly surprised by the fact Duncan really was there. Before he said anything, she grabbed his hand and dragged him in the loft before slamming the door behind.

"Whoa Princess, if you really want me, you just have to say it!"The punk joked before winking at her.

"That ain't funny Duncan! Just sit on the couch while I make us some coffee."She answered and paced hastily toward the kitchen.

Once his ex-girlfriend gone, Duncan made slowly his way toward the living room while looking around the hall. That was huge. There were lots of pictures of Courtney, some of her family and most of the other stuff were painted pictures. Everything was pretty classy. He always knew Courtney would have a great future but, he had to admit it, that was more than he would have guessed. He stopped looking around, considering he had seen enough, and walked over to the couch, dropping himself on him. A few minutes later, Courtney came back with two coffee mugs evaporating steam and smelling freshness.

"Here, I didn't know how you take it so I guessed you would like a cappuccino."The prep handed it to him while sitting next on the couch.

"Thanks."He muttered.

That didn't take him a long time to realize his Princess had changed. She was more sure of what she wanted and was physically grown up. That made a big difference from that tight-assed 18 year old girl she used to be five years ago.

Courtney noticed he had changed too. No more Mohawk, a few piercings less and that cocky smirk still across his face. He was, somehow, still the same old Duncan.

"So why did you want to talk to me?"

"Well, I―"Just when he lifted his eyes, the delinquent's eyes stopped in front of a picture of Courtney. She was dressed in a beautiful white bunk dress, her hair was curled prettily and her eyes were glowing happiness. She was sublime and smiley. And next to her was a guy, a dark haired man with tan skin, sexy in his way and smiling at his turn. He was wearing a white tux.

He remembered that guy. Justin was his name. He was a hottie in high school and every damn girl was falling for his mannequin smile. Duncan never really liked him, now he hated him more than ever.

"You... you're married?"Duncan only could stammer.

The tan young woman turned her head and rapidly turned back to Duncan, her eyes full of sorrow.

"For two years now."

"How could that happen?"

"Well, Justin and I began to date each other a few days after we broke up and, at the end of college, we married."She calmly explained though she just wanted to die at the instant.

"Why?"

"Because you have cheated on me, that's why! You seriously didn't think I would wait forever for you?" Courtney almost yelled before chilling down and sucking in a deep breath.

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry princess."

"So am I. I'm over you Duncan and I've found love near Justin. He understands me, he loves me as I am and he is what I deserve."

"I know that and I know I was such a fool these last years for having chosen Gwen over you. Maybe I just didn't realize it before but now I know I'm holding every breath for you. Please forgive me."

"What do you mean?"

"I love you."

Then without any advertising, Duncan pulled closer to the prep and pressed his lips against hers. She didn't pull back so soon, though that was the right thing to do. She just kissed back before quickly pushing him away and getting up, running her fingers through her messy brown hair.

"No, no that's wrong. I can't do this Duncan, you better leave."

"Courtney, I just apologized and you're telling me that's wrong?"

"That's not the apology part which is wrong!"Courtney shouted, almost crying before lifting her hand up, palm facing her and fingers stood up. "I am married and that means I can't do anything with anyone that isn't my husband."

Doing this, Courtney made her dressing gown sleeve slip down to her elbow and revealing a few dark bruises and cuts along her arm. Some of them seemed freshly done, others were old and bloody. Courtney quickly lowered her arm to hide them back but that was too late.

"What happened to your arm?"A suspicious Duncan asked.

"N―Nothing. I just stumbled in the stairs yesterday morning."

"Don't you take the elevator?"

"I wanted to work out a bit."She lied again. Duncan was still not satisfied though.

"Court, let me see your arm."

"No! Just leave, okay? Justin doesn't have to know you were here if you didn't stay a long time."

"And where's Justin?"

"He―He's at work. Now go."She said, pointing to the door.

"I thought he was a model. How come he has to work at night?"

"His has some different ways to work."

The room was quiet again. Duncan was staring fixedly at Princess, she was staring blankly at the floor, not able to hold back her tears anymore. Her eyes were wet and, for what seemed like forever, she looked weak and desperate.

"Courtney, let me see your body."

"No! I'm not letting you see me naked!"

"I don't want to see you naked, I just want to see if you have bruises at any other places."

"Please leave Duncan."Courtney sobbed, walking toward her room.

"No I'm not."He grabbed her by the sleeve and it happened fast. The gown undid by itself and slipped down Courtney's body. She wasn't naked, she was wearing her short PJ's under. But her body was clearly damaged. She had bruises on the thighs, her right arm had a large scar and most of her body had bruises and cuts again. The vision was terrible and heartbreaking. That was painful to see. Especially when the person having those kinds of wounds is the one you love. Duncan almost felt himself falling at that sight. Courtney was wordless, as was Duncan, and she didn't say anything, just taking her silk dressing gown back on.

"Courtney, is Justin hitting you?"

"No, he's not! I made those wounds myself, he has nothing to do with that."

"Stop lying to me! You could surely not have done this yourself! Look, I just want to help you."

"If you really want to help me, just leave okay? Justin is not hurting me. Period."

At these words, she made her way toward her room and slammed the door behind. Duncan was helpless. He really wanted to help her, to love her and he needed her as much as she needed him but how could he if she didn't want his help? He was really tired but he had to come back here. Maybe have a little talk with Justin would help. The punk closed the door behind him before walking back to the elevator.

Noon had passed the next day and Justin finally decided to be back home. It had been a while now and, even if his wife had not cooked anything to eat, he was still a sweetheart until he checked the camera tape. Courtney was still sleeping when she heard his voice calling through the house. Not that sweet honeyed voice he used to have, the harsh one. Then, it hit her; she had forgotten to erase the tape of last night. The one with Duncan showing at their house. The one when both of them are shown kissing. She really didn't have anywhere to hide this time. Justin kept calling her louder and angrier and she really didn't know what to do. Then, it was too late. He was standing in the door frame of their room, his eyes full of fire and hatred, staring at her with rage and disgust.

"You had a guest last night?"

"Justin honey, that's not what you think."

"SHUT UP!"He yelled and slapped her violently. "You think that's the way you should act as a wife, fucking hoe? You better not do it again!"

"That wasn't intentional. And perhaps that would have worked differently if you were there last night."

She couldn't figure out how she dared saying those words. Courtney knew how Justin didn't like people telling him what to do, especially when that 'people' was her. She was scared to bones as he walked quickly toward her.

"What did you say?" He screamed, grabbing her collar. "You better shut the fuck up!"

The model threw her at the other side of the bed, so brutally she hit her head against the wall and a blood started to pour. She was crying, hard. She tasted blood in her mouth. She was pissed, a lot. And she couldn't do anything for this to stop. Justin exited the room, interiorly satisfied of that horrible act he made, and smiley at what he would say next.

"You know, you're prettier when you smile. I'll be fierce for you tonight, my love."

She was just too hurt to scream or to even fake a smile. Se just muttered "fuck you." under her breath before closing her eyes and wishing to die.

At the other side of the apartment door, there was a man standing in front of the carved letters. His breath was taken and he felt like someone just ripped his heart off his chest and burned it. He was pissed and wanted scream. He wanted to kill Justin just like he almost did with Courtney.

That man with a faux-hawk, he heard everything of what happened.


	3. Oak Tree

**Sorry for the last chapter… I wanted it to be nice and I think I rushed up a bit. It will never happen again, I promise.**

**Thank you so much for all those reviews! I really appreciate it. Honestly I'd never thought I'm Sooo Over You would be so popular. Shout-outs to each of my reviewers, you're the reason for this story to live!**

**This is it then. The third chapter already.**

**What I like the most about this story is I never get in writer's block. That gives faster updates!**

**Don't forget, folks, this story should be reviewed! Pleaasse!**

**And... Conjugal violence is not a joke. It's to take seriously. It always will. No woman deserves this treatment. Either man. But since most of my reviewers are females...**

**LET US FEMALES STAND UP AGAINST THIS. REMEMBER THAT LOVE NEVER RHYMED WITH HURT.**

**On this, enjoy that. **

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**Oak Tree**

Duncan could have rushed in the couple's loft and killed Justin for what he did to his princess. He could have saved her from that atrocious atmosphere and found a way to keep her close forever by his side. That would have been the life she really deserved, but not so soon.

There are some people cursed to be at the wrong place at the wrong time for their whole lives, but he knew this time he wasn't one of these. He wanted to see her, he wanted to hold her, he wanted to fight for her, anything to get her back. This morning, after that whole scene he had with Courtney the previous night, he knew what he absolutely had to do. He had crawled off bed after a short night of no sleep, too busy trying to think of a plan, and went straight back to her place. There he didn't have to ring at her door since a couple passing by gently offered to open the door for him.

The punk perfectly remembered the numbers of her loft door as he walked around the ninth floor, his heart beating brutally in his normally hard chest. Duncan roamed a little but finally found his way when he realized he was standing in front of her… er… **their** door. He hadn't prepared the speech he would give Justin but for sure he knew he was going to do something for Courtney; release her.

As his hand made its way up in the air, ready to knock the steel door, Duncan heard a thunderous noise coming from inside. Then a deep voice ranting fiercely and outrageously about some guest and another more high-pitched feminine voice replying back with hatred and boldness. Duncan stayed attentive to this though that quite made him wanted the wall.

He finally heard a banging noise, like if something were thrown on the wall and made other items around fall along at the shock. To complete the audible scenery, a mean laugh echoed across the apartment and all became silent again.

Duncan was pissed. And mad, and confused. Princess almost passed near death a second ago and, even though he _**really**_ loved her, he was helpless. She herself said she didn't want to go with him and, though what he had heard, that wasn't enough proof to accuse Justin of anything. And who knew, maybe he just threw something random on the wall to evacuate his rage.

He knew what he had to do and he will help her. He really will but not now. There were still a few things to do first.

Duncan slowly backed away from the door, unrelieved and disappointed, as he reached the elevator. Stepping in, he turned around to face the empty hallway quickly hidden by the closing electric moving doors.

"I'll come back."He whispered though no one was in sight.

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Justin was now out again for an unknown period of time, what meant Courtney wasn't scared anymore to go out her room. She painfully stretched from her fetal position and gripped the bed sheets beside her, those that were creased and maybe stained with blood when her husband hit her, until she was able to get up and trudge out the room. In the hallway she stopped in front of one of the many mirrors the house was decorated with. Yeah, when you're sharing a place with a model, no doubt you have to live with his narcissism. What princess saw was what she expected but she was still shocked; her eyes were swollen, her lower lip was cut and there was a hard, bright and red mark on her left cheek, right where the slap was done.

Though she was a strong woman, for a second she wanted to cry. Cry for that hell she was living. Cry for everyone suffering like her on earth. Cry for that cold heart Justin possessed and though her constant efforts, he wasn't open to changes. And cry for herself finally. Courtney wasn't a bad woman though. She was nice, worked hard and was practically perfect to her husband so why making her suffer this way?

Perhaps she just wasn't worth him. Perhaps he was just too good for her and by beating her up, he was just showing her who the boss was. Who the prettiest was. Who the best was. That was logic; he was right. And Courtney knew even before they got married. And even if Justin had those defects, they were very little compared to what he was giving her. He was stinking rich and he was freaking hot! And beside they were living in a castle, were friends with the richest people in Canada and some in the U.S., were accepted to the most private receptions and were able to get whatever they want. Wasn't that every girl's dream? Yeah, that was easier to see it this way. Justin was giving her the life she deserved, and the "painful" part was just his way to punish her for all the bad things she had done. Selfishness, egoism, meanness… All those things she had been accepting of herself toward others. That was a good explanation. Justin was doing all those things to hurt her back _**because**_ he loved her.

If she had told someone, everyone would know it wasn't true. Goodness and pain, except in sex, never come along. As hate is not related to love. Never.

Courtney ran fingers through her messy brown locks, and that movement brought a great souvenir. She remembered, that fall afternoon at the start of their sophomore year, Duncan and her were resting underneath that old oak tree near an old wheat field. That was their favorite place because and no one knew it; far from friends, far from their parents, far from the world. Just two young people living a good life and secretly wishing they could be together happily ever after. Simple and quiet. Laying on Duncan's chest area, Courtney was silently forgetting about her whole stressing life and relaxing in her boyfriend's strong arms while he was softly stroking her hair. They weren't talking, cherishing every peaceful part of that marvelous alone time.

"Princess?" Duncan's tired but still husky voice broke through the sound of fall windy breeze.

"Hum?"

"Your hair smells good."

"Thanks, I guess."Courtney giggled sheepishly. Her eyes slowly closed again and once the calm came back, her delinquent but still a sweet heart of boyfriend talked again.

"I never told you this before but I never felt this way before."

"Which way?" She shuffled a bit so she could see him.

"Something called love."

For a second, words couldn't come out her lips. That was the first time someone told her so big words. Maybe once her own parents told her they adored her but that was a long time ago. Like when she was 10! But that was special. Really special. Butterflies started to burn in her tummy as she simply returned the favor with words she really thought though no one ever taught her to say them.

"I love you Duncan. I truly do."

"I love you too, Princess."

"You already said so."Courtney made him notice, stifling a little laugh but barely succeeding.

"It doesn't matter. For you, I could say it a thousand times and never get tired. Just for you to always remember."

And they fell asleep together until evening came and their ways had to separate.

Courtney sighed. That must have been the best moment of her life. The whole thing was so perfect so why did it have to end? She could blame the world; Gwen for the hookup, her parents for telling Duncan he wasn't worth for their daughter, that love calculator she tried that told her they didn't belong together… Everything was against her. Karma is just a bitch!

No, she had to stop this. She loved Justin. JUSTIN! She was married to Justin and marriage is supposed to be until death. And beside, Duncan broke her heart. She was over him. No, she was **sooo** over him.

Stubborn but wrong, she sighed again and walked toward the bathroom. With the blood she had in the face, no doubt she had to clean it off before next night's encounter. Justin said he wanted to present her some guys from some kind of film project. If it went well, he said he might get the main role in a movie. It was sure she didn't feel in the mood to brag about her husband's perfectness but she didn't have the choice. We know why.

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After speeding and exceeding of maybe 30 km/h the limit, Duncan finally slowed down in front of a marvelous two-story house in an uptown neighborhood. Panting heavily, he stepped out the car, almost slamming the door, and paced toward the front door. He rang twice before someone actually answered, peering through the white lace curtains and turning the doorknob.

"Duncan?"A blond haired old friend responded, surprised by that sudden visit.

"Hey Bridge. May I talk to you for a moment?"

"Sure. Come on in." She gestured him to come in, slowly closing the door behind.

Interiorly, the house was as beautiful as outside. Most of the curtains were made of white lace, perfectly fitting the yellow color of the kitchen. Further in the hall, we could see a bit of the living room that was painted some kind of dark red and curiously reminding those old countryside houses in Canadian prairies as Alberta. On the top of all, by the back entrance window, we could see their backyard was facing a fabulous lake that would be accessible for many families once summer on. Those details reminded him of that oak tree Courtney and he used to lay under when they were younger. That was the first time too he told her he loved her. God he missed that girl.

"Geoff will be down in a sec, he's been gone checking on the baby."Bridgette explained, handing him a beer as he's comfortably sat on one of the kitchen chair, as in the good old days.

"That's nice he finally decided to take his responsibilities."

"Yeah, I guess having a baby just made him grow up but I know he'll always stay the same party guy we all knew first."

"How is she?"Duncan asked, curious about it.

"Fine. She's healthy, weighs 8 pounds and cries all night but it's surely a good sign."

He nodded in agreement before continuing, sighing deeply.

"Look Bridgette, have you noticed something… weird with Courtney?"

"What do you mean?"

"I know you still see each other at times but, I don't know, she's acting kinda different than before―"

"You've seen her?"Bridgette cut him, startled by those implied confessions.

"Kind of."He mumbled. "Do you know anything that could help?"

"I don't exactly know anything Duncan but what I am sure of is if Courtney has been harsh or rude with you, it is because you broke her heart."

"I know I did, Bridgette. And that's why I came back! I realized I loved her more than anyone and I have regrets not to have known it before. That's why I need your help!"The punk spoke those words with such a determination and power in his voice. It was like if he just said 'I love her to death and I'm ready to fight for her' but those words stayed in his head. Someday she will see this.

"Hmm, you know she's married, right?"

"That's exactly why I came to see you." He sucked in a deep breath before spitting all out for the first time, even though that might get Princess angry. "Justin is not what everyone thinks he is. I did a little visit to Courtney last night and I noticed some bruises on her arms and body. And―"

"What?"The surfer chick reacted, not believing her ears of what she heard. "You mean he is…"

"Yes."

"Oh my gosh, Courtney…"Her eyes started to tear up for her longtime best friend. Justin always seemed nice to her, to everyone even. In high school, he was very popular, most of the girls' dream was to date him and Bridgette had to admit she even once fell under his spell. But that didn't last because she found Geoff. The surfer chick felt pitiful. It was basically her that pushed Courtney to give the model a try. What friend would have done that?

"I know it's hard but please don't cry. I hate see chicks crying."

"You know what, you're right. I won't cry for that motherfucking model. He doesn't deserve her. I hope he dies in hell."She wished, her eyes still wet but filled with rage.

"I need your help, Bridge."

"Of course I'm gonna help you!"

"Help you for what?"Geoff's happy voice broke through, him approaching the two others. Duncan greeted him by some kind of manly handshake/hug as the party animal sat with them at the table. Bridgette decided to take up from where Duncan left, explaining Geoff what is happening.

They talked for an hour or two before agreeing on something; they would help Courtney but they had a lot to do before. On this, they made up a plan.

_**

* * *

**_

8 o'clock

Her casual dress was gone, her hair was a mess, her inner thighs hurt. That was sign Justin really had been fierce tonight. Even more horny than before. He was laying peacefully on the large king size bed of their room, facing the ceiling and smiling dreamily. Her wife wasn't as happy as he was. In fact, she wasn't at all. She was disgusted, outraged and felt violated. How could she even bore letting him fuck her after all he did to her? At times before, she used to like it, not anymore now. Courtney just didn't feel it, she knew it but preferred to stay quiet and forget. Keep faking about this. Maybe that was love.

"Uh honey that was… wow!" Justin said, caressing her thigh beneath the covers.

"Yeah, it was."She faked a smile. _Plastic as that love_, but that she didn't want to believe it.

"Courtney, do you love me?"

"Of course I do."Perhaps she lied, perhaps not.

"If you love me then, would you do something for me?"

She turned to face him.

"Of course. Anything for you."

"You know that meeting of tomorrow?"

"Yes?"She shifted more.

"I really want to have the first role. I really want this."He slowly said, meeting her beautiful onyx.

"I know you do."

"Fine, then you gotta help me."

"What could I do? You want to practice for your role with me?"

"Hell no!"Justin exclaimed, as if he were disgusted by that suggestion. "No, what I need you to do is, you know at Hollywood, actresses are ready to do anything to get a role… And I really mean 'anything'…"

Courtney's eyes widened. Her own husband was asking her to do that. The guy that clearly forbade her to do anything like this asked her to do that! She couldn't believe it.

"You want me to sell my body?"

"Yes!"He answered as if it were no big deal.

"Justin! I'm your wife, that means I am engaged to you. I won't have sex with a film director to get you a role!"

"I knew you wouldn't want! Could you stop being selfish for once and think of me? That's an opportunity for me to get famous, don't you care?" His soft self was mad again. His voice rose as he sat up and put on his clothes, furious as hell. "It's always you, you, you! You're a fucking bitch! An egoistical whore who doesn't give shit about anything than her Prada shoes. I wonder why I married you! Just go fuck your criminal!"

He got dressed and walked through the door, for once not touching her. It didn't stop her though to ask a question.

"Where are you going?"

"Find a sexier girl that would sexually satisfy me. You were boring tonight. Oh and, if you don't do what I told you tomorrow night, I will make you live hell until_ your _death."

And he slammed the door behind him.

The prep couldn't understand. He just threatened her of death if she weren't _cheating_ on him. And if she did, would he tell her he didn't want to and kill her anyway?

This time, she was stuck. Only one solution left.

Courtney snatched the phone beside her and dialed the number she had memorized though she didn't want. After two rings, a manly voice answered.

"Help me."She simply sobbed.

* * *

**No, no, no! Don't think that guy who answered was Duncan. I'm giving you a spoiler; it's not! Too bad next chapter will come in at least two weeks... Aw, I know I'm mean. Will this keep you from reviewing? I hope not.**

**BTW: Yeah, I didn't feel like putting violence here but next time, there will be. That's a promise.**

**~KatyJay09**


	4. Outside

**A/N : Hello beautiful peeps… I know I said I would update in two weeks and here we are… one month after. But I had reasons! I was busy since school starts Monday for me and I have to hurry for everything… And I am late for most of my stories. Sorry **

**Anyways, I'm glad to now have 27 reviews… That was my target for the third chapter but it doesn't mean I don't want more! You know I love to talk to you **

**I'll stop with the babble. Go ahead and read…**

**Don't forget. Domestic violence is not a joke. Take it seriously.**

**

* * *

**

Outside

"Ma'am?"

_10:09 _was flashing on a black background of a rectangular box. Her body was as cold and lifeless as a corpse, well what it seemed like. Staring blankly at the clean beige wall of her perfectly decorated bedroom, she held the phone tight in her hands, her eyes soaked and her face white of fear. She couldn't respond anymore. She didn't know what to do anymore. A voice kept speaking at the other end of the line but Courtney felt like it was just part of that world. That unfair world she was forced to dwell in.

"Ma'am?"The man repeated, worried that she wouldn't answer.

"Oh yeah. I'm, uh, I'm here."The married woman answered finally, still frightened and lightly traumatized by what happened.

"Is there anyone that knows about your husband's violent excess?"

"Um, yes. No! It's complicated."

Though she wouldn't say it, it was truly hard to talk about her problem to the operator even if he was a professional and was hearing those kinds of stories everyday. And her pride was clearly getting struck just by calling there. It was not easy to say she was domestically mistreated, just her luck it was an anonymous line.

"How complicated?"

"Well, I have a…"She hesitated to say the word 'friend' because she truly didn't know what Duncan and she were. "An acquaintance that has seen some of the wounds I have on the body but that's it I think."

"And how did he react at the sight of those injuries? Did he try to help you?"

"Well he tried but I sort of refused…"The stubborn housewife was shameful of admitting that little refusal of hers and she _knew_ that had been wrong to say no to Duncan because perhaps he was the solution to all her problems. _No, again __**JUSTIN **__is my husband. I have a band stuck around my finger! _She tried to convince herself.

"Okay. Ma'am, there are many solutions possible for your problem but only one is guaranteed to work."She held her breath, fearing the sentence she really didn't want to hear, nor the action she didn't want to talk about. "There is a refuge for beaten women on the 14th avenue in the uptight neighborhood near where you live, right beside the St-Monica hospital. You can go whenever you want and they will receive you."

"You mean, you want me to leave my husband?"

"It is the only working way."

"No, no, no! That cannot be the only way! I don't want to leave my husband only for a little defect of his. Is there, I don't know, a therapy or something like that?"She sounded desperate though she knew that was the answer she was looking for. _Leaving. Leaving him for everything he had done to her. For every single wound he cased to her, as mentally as physically… Abandon him for all the pain he gave. Depart._

"Well, you could also try to make him see a therapist but I doubt, by experience, that this would work. 97 percent of time, men or women with grave misbehavior like this are not completely healed after this and could come back to their former activities at anytime. And that is _if _they accept the treatment."

That was it. She was screwed. Knowing her untamable spouse, he would certainly throw her on the wall before she even pronounced the word 'help'. He would probably kill her if she tried to propose something. Justin hated to be told what to do, just like Duncan but at least he wouldn't strike her each time she told him to remove his Mohawk… But Justin he at least never broke her heart. Granted, he was cheating on her with any girl that would spread open their legs just for him but at least he was telling her he loved her everyday, not like that stupid delinquent would bother to do. So between getting her heart broken again and again or having the greatest husband on earth but repetitively but being cheated on every time, the choice was hard but obvious; she had to choose the model. After all, they could always keep the 'ever after' life with him… Or could it be?

"I cannot do this. Never mind, I am going to find a way to get out of it myself."

"Ma'am, if I may. If I were you, I would rather―"

"Well actually you aren't me. You don't live with a violent spouse that you love with reasons you hardly find but dearly know why. Thanks for your support but I think I am going to do it my way."

"If you need any―"

The conversation stopped when Courtney literally punched the off button, pissed of the truth the experienced man was telling her. Justin was perfect! He just needed to be talked to and maybe he would understand that she couldn't sleep with someone that she didn't love. He would cry out, then threaten her and finally he would hug her and kiss her, saying he would be alright. Just like any normal couple would do. Everyone fights sometimes, and that was utterly average and familiar to anyone. She was doing the right thing. _As a wife._

At least, that was what she thought.

She crawled on the bed earlier soiled by the beasty activities that have been accomplished. Laying painfully on the furniture, she let her eyelids close and tried not to think about the chick he would possibly screwing at that exact moment, not to think about Duncan or all the friends she had given up when she engaged herself to Justin, not to think of all the harm she suffered of, and not to think about how a betrayer she was to herself. She was giving herself up.

She practically tried to die.

_**

* * *

**_

Next Day

"That can't be right!"The Mohawked grown-up man exclaimed, mad at what he just heard.

"Sorry Duncan, we have no other possibility. You have to do it."

In her arms was resting a one-month old baby girl named of the simple but beautiful name of Lilly, in honor of the surfer girl's grandmother. Her mother, now out of a painful labor done not a long ago, was slowly rocking her with the world's biggest love a new parent could offer his child while sitting in an armchair next to her boyfriend and her fellow good friend. The plan was ready, and even had a cute and memorable name; CIT. That was reminding all of them of Courtney.

How bad Duncan missed that girl. Out of every girl he ever had, none was like her. They never had anything on her because she was unique. If he could back up into time, he certainly would have said no to Gwen's advances and just stay with the girl he _truly _loved. And if he had done that instead of playing both of them and going too far, Courtney wouldn't have met Justin and gotten stuck into that vile circle. That unloved relationship. Life was a bitch to him, a horrible punishment! Why could a guy so heartless and unworthy of her have the girl he has been dreaming of forever, _his Princess._ That was unfair, really unfair but he would do anything to keep her out of his clutches, this time.

"You're sure there is no other?"Duncan asked, almost begging them.

"No other."She confirmed.

"Shit!"He spat, banging his large fist against the wooden table of the living room. The baby, startled by that sudden noisy and scary sound, woke up in her mom's arms and started to cry of her really high-pitched voice. Bridgette glared witheringly at Duncan before storming to the first floor, leaving the two boys talking. When Duncan thought his friend wouldn't be enough smart to start a speech about the importance of 'it' to work, Geoff proved him the pure contrary.

"Bro, that's important, you know?"

"If course I know, I am actually the one who came to you!"

"Well, if you really have a thing for Courtney, I think you could forget about what you did in the past to save her."Geoff had a worried and dead serious expression plastered on his face, making a change from his normal goofy smile.

"But does that really have to include Gwen?"The punk sounded almost desperate just to hear her name. Gwen and he did have a story, and it wasn't only because of Courtney he broke up with her, it was a more personal case. Personal as in humiliating. And that was the reason why it was in the **past**.

"Yes it does. She is the only one who's able to help us. Don't be selfish for some stupid thing happened in the past, you're doing this for Mocha. _Remember?_"

"Yes I remember! But I just don't want to face that _witch_ again."He sneered, reminding himself of what she did.

"It happened six months ago! Stop acting like a chick and forget about that. It is for Courtney!"

Geoff was right. It was for Courtney he was doing this. His princess. The girl he wished he could pass all his life with. The woman he fell in love with. Beside that, though Gwen was nothing more than a piece of shit to him now, he knew she had a great side. There were several good moments they had together, like that night they incorporated blue paint into the school's swimming pool right before the annual illegal pool party. The result was unforgettable; all the jocks, athletes, cheerleaders and other relatives were blue-skinned for a whole week! Until nowadays, those suckers are still looking for the responsible people. Knowing Gwen, she would not be that evil to let Courtney die though they hated each other's guts. She would help.

"You're right, man. I-I'll call her."

"Good then."

The criminal shoved his hand into his jeans pocket and snatched out his phone, flipping it open and dialing his ex's number, which he failed to forget after their breakup. Two rings were heard before her feminine gothic voice (dark-like, you know) greeted grumpily. Surely because she was 'creating'. That girl hated to be distracted or interrupted when she was working on a piece of art. That was one of her defects to be easily irritated.

"Hey Gwen, it's Duncan. Look, before you hang up on me, you really should listen to what I need to tell you…"

* * *

It was 7 o'clock and Justin decided to come back, almost after twenty four hours of disappearance. He had his magnificent smile hung on his face, the eyes glowing of happiness and well dressed for the 'important' meeting of tonight, like nothing happened yesterday and the other days before. Well, for him it didn't matter since he was not the one assaulted many times. His baby blue eyes shinning sweetly, he enjoyed that he had a hundred percent of chances to obtain the part he really wanted, and that thanks to his wonderfully flawless wife.

He stepped around the loft, looking for the so-called love of his life and expecting her to be ready. "Sweetie, where are you?"The model chirped on a honeyed voice.

She didn't respond. Telling himself it couldn't be something bad, he walked to the principal bedroom, thinking he might find her in bed. Maybe she would be dressed sexily in a lace thong and a bra just to practice for when he will introduce her to the film director. She always had been good in bed, but this time she needed to be amazing.

Leaving his perverted and selfish thoughts, Justin noticed the door was slightly open, what made him more horny and curious about the mystery of the situation. He stepped a few times again and pushed the wooden rectangular door, revealing a woman standing in front of a mirror, her back facing him. A midnight blue dress covering her tanned body, silver pending earrings with diamonds at the end on her ears, a white pearl necklace and her brown highlighted hair cutely gathered into a bun. He could not see her face, but he knew she was beautiful as usual.

"Wow, honey. You-You're mesmerizing."

The end of her lips pulled to the corner, faking another small smile. The lady truly wanted to shed tears, but was too sad to manage to. Or too strong perhaps.

"So you are ready to make me get the most important thing of my life?"

Those words hurt. She wanted so bad to snap back and make him taste of his own medicine but, from her own mother's words, fire couldn't fight fire. Only water could. Thinking of those wise words pronounced by an important woman in her life, she took a deep breath and stood for herself for the first time, though she felt a huge pain in her knees.

"No."

"I beg your pardon?"Justin's recently glad voice changed for a violently mad pitch.

"I said no. I will not have sex with someone that isn't―"

She couldn't finish her sentence before her violent husband practically ran toward her, grabbing tightly her arm at the point of it to turn blue, and throw her on the bed. The mattress absorbed the shock, but Courtney's arm hurt as hell. That wasn't enough though.

Justin brought his fist up in the air and, like everything was seen in slow motion, hit the young adult right beside the eye area. It didn't start to bleed but it was quickly becoming purplish black with shades of blue. It hurt, it hurt so bad but this time she didn't want to cry. She was not even sad. Nor disappointed because she knew that was supposed to happen.

Courtney was not looking at him but she knew he was staring at her with rage in his eyes, what he would rapidly change for an apology he would not think, as usual. Though she feared he would do it again, she slowly swiveled her head to see her husband panting heavily after having hit her right next to her right eye, causing a black eye. Her eyes wide open, tears not even willing to come out this time, she looked at him straight in the eyes and felt fearless just to say two words seeming insignificant said alone.

"It hurt."

Justin said nothing. That was the phase when he realized what he did.

"Is that the way you are telling me you love me?"She spat, managing to talk though she wanted to flee.

"I-I…"He stammered.

"Is that the way you are thanking me for staying with you all these years? When I stand by you, love you, cherish you, let you make love to me? Is that the way you love me, as an object?"

This time, she didn't see that coming. Justin, feeling weak, helpless and undeniably sorry, burst into tears, resting his head on hers. She didn't want to cry for herself now, she felt sorry for him.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, baby. I don't know what happened. I just- I'll never do it again! I promise."

Courtney let herself got again. Justin stepped closer to her and slung his arms around her, embracing her as she wrapped her arms around his waist and tried to hold him tight against her, feeling bad for him. He was her husband after all, and everyone was doing mistakes. That was incoherent to think he would do it again if he promised.

"You-You don't have to do it, okay? I love you, Courtney and if you don't feel comfortable with that, I understand. I'd rather have you than any imbecile contracts. I love you, don't forget that."

_He loves me_, she thought. And she was convinced it was the truth.

"I love you too, Justin."

He would not do it again, she knew it. Justin was the perfect man for her. He was meant for her and she was meant for him. They belonged together. They stayed in a steady hug for a good long and profitable time

As her eyes closed while she had his strong arms braced around her, knowing she was in security, she let a tear of joy slip down her cheek. Duncan could never promise her happiness like this. Duncan was not worth her, Justin was. And forever she was his faithfully. She now could tell apart good from bad, givers from thieves, love from hate and glee from sorrow. She held on to that declaration he just made.

_He would never do it again._

* * *

**A/N: She is naïve… But it is not over. Far from it. Stay tuned.**


	5. Gleeful

**A/N: Yeah! Fast update here *does happy dancing*... The reason of it was that I planned out the end of that story last Monday and I have the honor to tell you that this will end at... 12 chapters! 8 (now 7) left, counting the epilogue, and it's over. Sorry for those who wanted it never to end but I'm truly flattered though.**

**I hit 36 reviews! Yeah, next time I might hit the forties... That'd be really cool :D**

**So... No violence here. And no more for maybe two more chapters and then... It will be bloody. Heck, I'll stop giving you spoilers now. **

**And a lot of Glee references here. Seriously, I wasn't thinking of it when I was writing that chappie, but my head thought that way so.. I dunno.**

**And also, I started school Monday. Not too bad, but I wish I could be back on vacation. My last year in middle school, I feel young! And you, what year are you starting this year? How was your first day? Horrible? Awesome? Tell me :)**

**See you soon, guys.**

**Gleeful**

Her head was buried in his chest, as she was still peacefully sleeping on him. The bed was not empty as it usually would be, instead was filled by two people in total love with each other. Today seemed to announce a wonderful day, the start of a new life as the wife of a wonderful man. Her man. For once in a year, she woke up next to him in bed, not alone knowing who would be hung over next to some random whore she wouldn't know. Or didn't wish to know. For once in her whole marriage life, she felt _alive_.

Courtney opened her eyelids, figuring out it was a wonderful morning of the middle of March. Spring would soon show up as trees would get their leaf coats back on, making them less depressing. It would also meant the filming season would start. Flicks that would be absolutely popular on the next Academy awards would begin their production, but Justin's movie would start its next year. If she didn't mention it, her marvellous husband Justin got the part he wanted, as the film's main character. She was proud of him; he worked hard to get it and he had done it by himself... No need to prostitute his wife. He was now a model _and _an actor.

The model noticed her head moving on his chest, hoisting from it to narrow her eyes at the strong light creeping through the stylish purple curtains. He beamed, thinking of how adorable his wife was when she was doing that. She let out a groan, not pleased of that vision, but smiled when she realized who was next to her.

"Morning Sunshine."He greeted, his handsomely sexy morning voice on.

"Morning."

Justin leaned in, pecking a short but blissful kiss on her lips. This time she felt free to kiss him back, not forced or even disgusted. She wanted it, truly.

"You don't know how much I love you Courtney. I would die if I ever come to lose you."

Courtney held her breath, not knowing what to say. The last time she heard that kind of declaration was when Duncan did a surprise visit at their apartment. Thankfully she didn't have to worry about Duncan anymore. It was all about Justin now.

"I love you too, my big teddy bear!"She smiled but flushed when she realized how stupid that last sentence was.

Justin laughed. Her clumsiness was just making her more lovable.

He ran his hand through her silky hair, forcing her head to crash back on his hard and muscular chest. Feeling that homey sentiment she never truly had before, she reminded herself his promise.

_I will never hurt you again._

Remove the last word and you have got a part of their wedding wishes. Sure that should have been way harder to believe that truth since he already said he would not before but didn't respect it. Although this time she knew he was telling the truth because she had seen that apology glint in his eyes, right after he hit her. He was sincere. And she trusted him.

She didn't want Duncan to help her anymore. In fact, she never wanted. He was just a fucking bastard that was trying to ruin her marriage by not minding his own business. He was aggravating her, really. Now that she and Justin made up, the punk could just go to hell and never try to speak to her again, which was best for everyone. Justin was her spouse, therefore the one she had chosen. _Her half._ Her heart was in his head, forever and she hoped he would never go anywhere else.

"Hun?"Justin's loving voice broke through the peaceful silence of the room.

"Hmm, yeah?"

"I'm gonna take you for brunch. You shall dress up now."

"Really?"

"Truly, my love."He pecked one more kiss on her cheek before getting up and getting to the bathroom. Courtney smiled, glad of how perfectly her husband was treating her.

"I am lucky."She told herself.

* * *

They were sat at a table, in the chicest breakfast restaurant of the city. It was a kind of exterior emplacement, a Parisian solarium surrounding them. It was not too quiet as it was not too noisy, just perfect for a Saturday morning amongst two coupled people. No big families were in sight, probably because famous people those days were having one or two children instead of four or five, like the Jolie-Pitt family. It was relaxing and mesmerized by the ambiance.

His hand slid on hers, making her quiver of the warmth of it.

"You're okay, Courtney?"He glared at her in her deep onyx eyes, not even bothering that the waiter was not at their table yet. That kind of whim was the old Justin's habit.

"Why wouldn't I be?"She said, covering his hand with her free one. "I live the perfect life with my amazing husband. I don't need anything more to be happy."

He was a little awestruck by that confession but he totally felt the same way.

"Same for me. I will never ever replace you. You are the only one for me."

She blushed again. That was all too sweet to be real words pronounced by someone that used to have a violent temper... but that was the past.

Justin brought their hands tangled with each other a little upper in the air, so he his left hand could cover them, letting her wedding ring shining through the pile of hands.

"I promise I will always stay yours, and love you more than I actually love myself. I promise to wake up by your side every morning, comfort you when you hurt, scream with you when you are mad, open my arms to you when you need a friend..."

"Wait?"She interrupted him, figuring out that sudden little speech he came out with. "Are you repeating our wedding wishes? Those wonderful things you promised me the day of our union?"

He nodded, smiling again. His smile must have been the most beautiful she had ever seen.

"I want to make a new start with you. I want to tell the world how much I love you. And I want to prove you how much I care, like the first time I saw you."He chuckled. "I never told you but I've memorized every single word of our wishes and every time I look at you, I remember that white gown you wore and that glee on your face. Since that day, I've known you were the girl I wanted to spend the rest of my life with."

Her eyes watered. That was simply mesmerizing. Where the heck was that Justin she had loved for so many years while the other was mistreating her?

He brought his hand to her face and stroked her cheek delicately, catching the sight of the waiter. The young boy, wearing a clean white apron matching perfectly his black shirt, grunted quietly at the sight of another cuddly couple but had to walk over to their table and let them order. Honestly, the former CIT didn't know what to ask more; everything she needed was already there, but Justin had one more surprise left for his beloved wife.

"I had the little idea that we should have more 'alone' time together..."

"I'd like to pass more time with you too."She said, not even bothering to look at the waiter waiting impatiently beside her and utterly annoyed by that big amount of cheesiness.

"So... I figured out we could go to Jamaica next week. I've already reserved the tickets."

Happy by that announcement, she grabbed her man's collar and kissed him lovingly on the lips, making the waiter sigh again behind his fake smile. For once, they weren't doing a trip just for his work.

"I've got the best husband in the world!"She exclaimed, a tear slipping down her cheek.

* * *

The goth was remaining calm while sipping a latté, though the story she just hear was far from a fairy tale. They were sitting in a café near the girl's apartment, whom Duncan called two days before claiming it was an emergency. She managed to hold back her tears, not that she was a cold hearted person, just not such a sentimental one. Gwen was a little surprised that Courtney was living an awful situation like this one. As far as she could remember, the prep used to be that strong stubborn girl that would never let anyone stop her from winning what she wanted, a bit like a mix of Sue Sylvester and Rachel Berry stuck in the same body, but with much more sex-appeal. That was actually really out of character, even from an excellent actress like her.

"Are you sure this is happening?"She asked again.

"Yes I am. You know I am not the kind of guy who would lie about stuff like this."

"Yeah, that's true. But I mean, are you sure she technically 'hates it'? As far as I know, Courtney would never let herself 'gotten' like this..."

"What do you mean?"He asked, suspicious.

"Well, it's just that some women voluntarily let themselves beaten by their husbands or boyfriends because they find it attractive."She rolled her eyes, not daring looking at him.

"Princess is not that kind of girl."

"What proves you?"

Tricky question, but true. Courtney never asked for his help, she even told him to leave her alone. And beside, he just heard the noises coming from the inside of the loft, he didn't _**see **_it, so was that making of him a credible witness? Not really, the banging noise could have been anything. And finally, if really Courtney had problems with that, she would have long before looked for help and _found_ it.

That still didn't convince him to back down. Princess was stubborn, everyone knew it. And Justin didn't have a clean past according to what the punk heard. The model was accused, in Junior year, of being really temperamental and at the verge violent by his ex-girlfriend. Though she had solid proofs, no one believed, blinded by the handsomeness of that dear highschooler. Duncan had to admit that he as well didn't believe it, but Gwen did.

"Courtney is just enough headstrong and shallow to give up on him. He is giving her what she wants, from mentally to physically."

"Gross."The goth snorted.

"Agreed."

She sighed, rolling her eyes again and tugging a strand of her teal streaked black hair behind her ear. She seemed kind of... sad. A bittersweet glare in her eyes, something was definitely.

"Why would you think some women like to... suffer?"

"I―It's nothing."

"Are you sure?"He raised an eyebrow, feeling concerned.

She pursed her lips, before running her hand in her hair, feeling stressed but already a little relieved by the confession she would tell. Gwen turned her head to the perfectly clean large window, not able to look at the delinquent being so shameful and also pitiful.

"My mother lived like that. My dad had a really short temper, what made him a little 'spoiled' about what he wanted. Every time my mom refused to collaborate on something, he would raise his hand on her and hit the bloodiest way he could. And since she was never replying and the next day would act like nothing happened, all smiley with everyone, I figured out she liked it."She sucked in a deep breath. "My dad passed away when I was 8, a heart stroke. On his grave the day of his funeral, I swore I would never let a man hit me like he did. Unthankfully, my mother had to be seen by a therapist to forget about that whole story, as for my brother. I hate my father."

That was a heart-open revelation from a girl that didn't share that much, a much softer and weaker perspective of Gwen. Duncan knew her dad left her, but he honestly never figured out he would be that kind of man. The one full of hatred and all shitty cruel feelings like that. That man was a monster to her mom, therefore to her too. He destroyed her, that's why Gwen always had problems to trust people.

"I'm sorry, Gwen. I'm really sorry. I―I just don't know what to say."

"It's okay."She beamed, though a tear escaped from her eye, ruining her mascara.

"It wasn't your mother's fault, or a choice to her. She just as scared as Courtney."He stated, placing his hand over hers.

"Though it breaks me to say this, Courtney is really lucky to have you, Dunk. She is a nice girl."

"I wish she could see like you."

Gwen chuckled. Duncan continued, madder than before.

"It's just so disgusting. How could a douchebag like him treat an amazing girl like her with such a lack of respect? He doesn't deserve her."He growled.

"You deserve her."

Her concerned stare met his angry one. She was sincere, what he could flawlessly see in her deep onyx eyes. But that was still startling to hear that from someone that actually hated the girl he loved... And the guy loving the said girl.

"You think."

"I do think. That is really fearless to try to free her from that danger. It's _chevaleresque_."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"Never mind."

He rolled his eyes, raising and lowering his pierced brows.

"So... Does that mean you're in?"

"I've been in since the start."

He smirked, just like usual. Gwen really was a loyal friend.

"What do we start by?"

"Well..."

* * *

_**Next Day**_

It was four o'clock pm when Courtney was packing enjoyably a few luggages for her wondrous travel experience to Jamaica with her incredibly blissful spouse, where they would share a mesmerising loving time together. That was the life she wanted, not the one she had a few months ago... well days ago. Justin didn't truly change to one bit, he just had become someone else for some time for unknown reasons and now everything was back to normal, she was convinced. Or was she really?

The door rang, announcing the arrival of somebody. The preppy woman trotted toward the front door, wishing it wouldn't be that home wrecking punk again, come to tell her that her marriage is just bullshit. She pressed the red button on an electronic panel, willing the intercom to start a communication. Crossing her fingers, she greeted.

"Hello?"

"Hey Court, it's Bridge."She was relieved to hear her long time friend's voice but a little shocked also. She and Bridgette, though they were close friends in high school, weren't talking to each other that much since she got married to Justin. At the beginning of that union, they were seeing each other once a week but when he started to completely freak out, Courtney was forced to let her good friend go, yielding to Justin's expectations.

"Oh Bridgette. Come in."Courtney invited her, hitting the button next to the red one allowing the ground floor door to unlock.

Waiting for the surfer to come up nine grounds, the brunette finally could open the door, facing a blond healthy woman. She stepped aside, letting her in and inviting her to sit on the couch.

"I'm really happy to see you."Courtney admitted, holding her in her arms.

"So am I."

The chic housewife smiled but didn't wait long to go on with the conversation.

"I've heard you and Geoff are now parents. Congratulation!"

"Thanks. I'm glad too to finally live that experience I've long wondered about. You don't know how pleasant motherhood is."

"Yeah, I wish I could also become a mom soon but I prefer to wait another year before going 'all the way'."

"Talking of motherhood..."Bridgette's voice trailed off, ready to dwell on the reason she came. "Is Justin here?"

"Uh, no. He went out. Appointment with his current boss."

"Well, that's good."Bridgette went closer to her friend, meeting her fearing onyx glare. The new mother took a deep breath and continued. "Duncan talked to me and he said something about―"

"It's not true!"The married woman cut off, revolted and offended by those upcoming accusations against her awesome lover. Thankfully, Bridgette was the kind of girl that could understand, and even deal with those kinds of denial.

"Courtney, I am going to ask you this only once; is Justin hitting you?"

She hesitated to answer, a lot. But it was the same response, again. "No. Justin is _**not **_hitting me."

Annoyed but seriously worried, Bridgette remembered what Duncan told her. About all those bruises she had on her body, from head to feet. That would be heart breaking to do what she would do, but it was the only way.

Purposely not as the criminal, the vegetarian grabbed her both wrists, not willing her to free from her clutches. Her striped white blouse sleeves instantly went up, revealing freshly done bruises on her forearms and seriously embarrassing the mocha tanned twenty-four year old. Bridgette frowned, feeling all the anger evacuate in her voice.

"Is that what you call not hitting you, Courtney?"She talked firmly, her jaw clenched tightly and feeling mad at her friend for not giving up on the denial.

"I―I fell down the stairs."

"Stop lying to me. Stop lying to yourself, you know what happened. Now try to help yourself!"

"I don't need any help, Bridgette. Justin is perfect!"Courtney claimed bitterly, but weakened by her strong words.

"A fucker who's beating you up is not perfect, Courtney! Can't you understand that, for Christ's sake?"

"You are talking about your husband."Courtney replied, frustrated.

"I'm talking about a wife-beater!"She yelled, furious of her friend's blind behaviour.

"He loves me."

"He doesn't love you."

Those words hurt. Not as dull as Bridgette's normal sweet hearted dull words, those from a fully understanding friend. Those words were from a different girl, a girl Courtney didn't want to know. A harsh friend, with stabbing words, but real. She couldn't give in so quickly though.

"Listen to me, and listen to me carefully because I will not repeat it again. I am going on an awesome vacation with my husband **Justin **and neither you, Duncan, Geoff or the cops are gonna force me to leave him. Now, get out of my propriety."

Bridgette got up, feeling defeated but knowing it was not done yet. Without saying a word, she walked toward the front door silently, on the verge of tears, not even bothering looking back to that friend she truly cared about. She felt like it was the end, like she failed. Pulling the metallic door, she went out.

And for the first time when it was not about Justin, the prep bowed down, feeling sorry for that best friend she let go again. She cried.

* * *

**A/N: Bittersweet ending here... And ironic. You know I love irony, just check the title of this story! I mean, how many of you thought, at first when you read the plot, it would be another stupid pointless love-hate story? *raises hand* It was supposed to be that at first, truly. But I had that idea while writing the prologue and it was born... Anyways, I'm just curious to know.**

**Love and chocolate**

**―FeelingThePullCallYourName**


	6. Breakouts, Break ins

**A/N: Another update... So, T.G.I.F. everyone. For me, this was a hard week. Algebra is such a bitch to me, as usual. Also I've got a lot of homework, less time and I'm always pretty tired at the end of the day. I like someone, he doesn't know me. My friend is pissing me off, I can't say it. My eye vision is getting worse, and my earlobes are swollen for unknown reasons. So in a short summary: Life's a bitch. **

**But at least I've got this to bring me up. Another chapter, halfway throughout the story now :D**

**This is the last violence-free chapter. Don't expect any gift from me next time, it is guaranteed there will be. But maybe not between Justin and Courtney...**

* * *

**Breakouts, Break-ins**

The sun of Jamaica was shining and gaining the power of ten fire balls concentrated with each other, rising its temperature to the fair 28° Celsius. If in the whole country of Canada, maybe in the rest of North America, the thermostat couldn't even reach the number 10 printed on and snow was unfortunately still precipitating down on the already whitish rooftops. We could bet every one that had been forced to shovel all nights since December was wishing that summer would come already so they could get out that cold hell. But... Two special people were making exception to the rule this time.

Beaches from left to right, the sun reflecting on the wondrous seas, romanticism emphasized by the beauty of the scenery, that place was just mesmerizing. This time of the year, tourists weren't invading in, which made it the perfect paradise for two people just looking for peace, clarity, serenity and loving time with each other. Lucky as they were, they would be departing back to that freezing climate two weeks later.

Well installed on an armchair facing the white sanded beach on a high-placed deck, her hand gripping relaxingly a Lady Pink **(A/N: Name of a gin-based cocktail... Checked on Wikipedia) **while her brand new shades block the view of the strong practically blinding sunshine, Courtney sighed contentedly while her body started its natural tanning process through her black bikini.

Justin had gone grabbing another cocktail a few minutes ago, leaving her a kiss on her cheek and making her wonder when he would come back to finish his 'job'. He talked about a place named 'The Swag' situated at the other side of the beach. They were temporarily residing in a reserved condo just on the most amazing private beach of the country. That was maybe the best gift her husband had ever given her, right after his promise of a few weeks, on which he gratefully still held onto. Justin always knew what to do to make her happy.

The preppy spouse looked at her ring for a second. It was still as intact and wonderful as the first day; four diamonds perfectly divided to the sides of a giant one in the center, catching her attention each time she was looking at it. The day Justin asked her to marry him, in that park near their college's campus, she swore she had water pouring out her eyes just like rain on an April afternoon. Though her eyes were really puffy and making her look like those weird childish dolls made of porcelain, Justin still knelt down on knee and offered this ring, as if he offered a new life to both of them. She, even on the shock, accepted with tons of "I will"s and caught him into a really tight embrace full of love and expectations. Everyone had heard that story a thousand of times, and honestly that was getting annoying, but from her parents to her friends, Courtney was assured everyone was happy for her.

Well, everyone but Bridgette.

And Bridgette was her best friend.

Who was always right.

So was it even possible this time the surfer had it right about Justin's bad side?

No... that was ridiculous. He was okay. All right! And he had been since the beginning. He just had a few bad periods while he was picking on her to forget but that was normal, everyone was doing that. Some do respiration exercises, others hit people.

_Others hit people... _Courtney thought, unsure why exactly she had said that sentence. Nor why she had just claimed Justin was okay when four years ago she would have added a lot of useless adjectives to describe his random awesomeness... Was it because she was just figuring out that Justin was not as amazing as she thought he was?

Ugh, stupid delinquent! Trying to fuck up her marriage again just influenced a little her point of view about her married situation. Thankfully she wasn't that oblivious; she knew Duncan was trying to use her just to his own advantage. Seeing his ex-girlfriend bound to a hotter guy than him was just a big punch in his pride's stomach, and that was just making her day way better to know that the punk was suffering. And maybe even asking god why he put so much hate on him. Or begging the high might to have her back.

She smirked smugly at that thought, just like he would do if something like this happened to her.

The brunette took her eyes off the sky's infinite blueness to stare at the sea wavering in the far front of her. It was fascinating. Courtney always wondered about the water's mind-blowing secrets, like how it could resist to people's undone pollution, the finest of its hundreds of oceans, the sun reflecting on the surface and its color... Its hypnotizing wondrously astounding blue color. Well, it wasn't that blue actually, it was more a mixture of blue and green. The name of that shade was... _teal_.

_The world's most beautiful color, _She thought, staring blankly at the water floating on the wet sand and at times coming to hit the shore and at the occasion the passing people's bare feet. They weren't the point though, neither was all that escaping landscape or the single shameless bitches parading like sluts on the ground, the real star of the scene was water, more especially the color of it. Courtney never admitted it, but she just loved teal eyed boys.

She bit her lower lip; that was such a turn-on. She felt like needed _**it**_. Needed it _now._ Justin was still not in sight though, what made her a little mad, just like the spoiled bitch she had always been when she was in lust, or just herself.

But Justin's eyes weren't teal. They were baby blue.

She suddenly snapped out her daydream, figuring out who she was unconsciously thinking about. _Duncan, again._

She sighed, not getting angry this time Duncan was haunting her thoughts. Perhaps the loss of sleep caused by yesterday's sexy activities was the reason of those sudden envies. Feeling defeated, Courtney got off the long chair and made her way toward her room, not even bothering wondering why Justin wasn't there already. She dropped herself on the newly made bed, falling instantly asleep after a short period. A little nap couldn't hurt anyone, could it?

* * *

In a tight elevator, we all know Gwen hated being stuck in since she was claustrophobic, but if that said elevator was larger than her bedroom, did that count?

The answer, we don't really know it and honestly don't give a damn, so let's go back to the situation.

Gwen's shaky body kept rocking back and forth as she waited along with Duncan for the system to take hit the lucky ninth floor. Pursing her dark lips and keeping her eyes focused on the flickering numbers over her head, she tried as well to ignore Duncan's laidback-ness, which was seriously pissing her off. Noticing it, the punk piped up.

"Could you please stop moving? It's not like you've never done that before."

"I've done this before but not in a psycho's apartment."She stated, glancing in her friend's direction.

"I didn't know you were scared of a prissy model..."

"I am not! I just fear that he could get in my house while I'm asleep and choke me in my slumber." The goth replied, obviously lying. "And besides, breaking in someone's home is an infraction that could make us go to jail. JAIL!"

"I basically lived in jail all my life and by the way, if we're breaking in to help someone is _not _a bad thing."

"But it is illegal!"

He rolled his eyes, tired of that pointless rambling.

"And I thought Courtney was always the only one freaking out."He mumbled purposely not for her to hear.

The sound of a little bell hit by a hammer was heard, announcing them they were right on the desired floor. The two partners didn't wait for the door to be fully opened to storm out of the cabin and rush toward the wanted loft. Stopping in front of some door, the delinquent bent down so his head could face the knob, grabbing his pocket knife and starting tampering with the lock. Gwen, forcing herself not to stare at her friend's activity, kept chewing her lip and humming a song to at least look less suspicious possible.

"Stop singing, please." Duncan demanded, his glare steadily resting on the knob.

"I just don't want us to get caught."

"By who? Bridgette told me Courtney and OJ Simpson have gone to Jamaica two days ago. And the janitor is having lunch right now in the restaurant at the other side of the street. Plus, no rich ass would in Toronto in the middle of winter when they can be at Bahamas islands fucking their wives under palm trees."He replied obnoxiously, right after magically unlocking the door, causing Gwen's jaw to drop.

He smirked, "Sure it would have been easier to steal the guard's key but I like to keep myself some challenge..."

He pushed the door, getting illegally into the apartment, followed by his fellow companion who caught herself smiling of the punk's smartass-ness.

As usual, the loft was perfectly clean. No blood on the walls, or any furniture badly placed on the floor, not even a bit of dust on the far corner of the room. Nothing. It was defect-less. That wasn't what they were looking for, though that was making him quite ticked.

His scan around him ended brutally when Gwen's voice echoed in the room. That was creepy to hear a sound like this when the room was full.

"We've got thirty minutes to go through everything here. I told Trent I went out to grab some tampons."

He arched his eyebrow. "I assume Elvis would have freaked out if he knew you were out there alone with me."

"He is just still a little iffy about you and me hanging out, and I understand him. Wouldn't you be if Courtney had cheated on you with another guy you thought she was just 'friends' with?"

Duncan sighed as his lips puckered. "Honestly, I kind of know how it feels."

"Sorry."She muttered.

"It's okay."

"So..."Gwen started, as an attempt to change the awkward subject into something more important. "I guess we could start by looking into the drawers and then we'll go through his files."

He nodded lightly and stepped toward the master room, following the determinate and knowing young woman. Opening the door, he caught himself disappointed again of the alright-ness of the bedroom, but rapidly chased away those stormy thoughts when he saw Gwen approaching the golden-knobbed drawers on the left side, those belonging to the professional model. She pulled them, revealing idyllically folded shirts and t-shirts resting in it. She shoved her porcelain hand between two rows of clothing, hoping she would find something.

"Look in the closet, I bet he has some other stuff we could search in."Gwen commended, fully committed into her research.

He nodded and headed toward the wardrobe, opening the clear wooden doors and getting in it. He wasn't surprised to find out the closet was larger than his own bedroom, containing outfits and only outfits. From walls to walls, expensive clothes were exposed and classified by order of color, size, season and price. A long red plank of wood separated the two lovers' belongings into two sections. Duncan easily noticed Justin's side was larger than Courtney's.

"What a snag."He snarled at the ridiculously snazzy dressing right in front of him.

He stomped around before starting his work, sickened by that effeminate image around. The punk seized first a grey designer cotton winter jacket, thrusting his hand into each pocket but got frustrated not to find anything then a lip balm, which seriously made him doubt about the model's sexuality. He threw the piece of clothing on the floor, telling himself he would remember replace it later.

A pile of clothes on the floor, nothing to prove anything against Princess's husband. He truly started to feel a little discouraged, even if he seemed more determined than before. Situations like these were reminders to a poor guy like him why he should have been there for her when she needed to, not playing into another girl's panties. Duncan loved her, and he was heart-achingly convinced there was a still, perhaps really small, part of her soul that had something for him back. He wished she could love him as much as he loved her, that was his biggest hope, but if she didn't feel the same as him and was still wounded by what happened a few years ago, he couldn't make her like him. And he would rather die than do as her husband; harm her to get what he wanted.

_Might_, a word so small but with so much impact on a life. Courtney was worth better than that, everyone knew it. And she also was much stronger than she currently was. The girl he had known was not a wimp like that woman; she was the symbol of power, feminine energy and beauty. In the blink of an eye, the Courtney he had met first would have killed Justin a while ago for all he had done on her. But she hadn't changed those last years; same character, persona, temper, intelligence… So what was making her so different?

On the merge of giving up, Duncan's hand slipped onto a glazed surface, smooth and cold under the tips of his fingers. It was thin, thicker than paper but smaller than cardboard. It didn't take so long for him to figure out what it was; a picture. The criminal grabbed out the object and realized it was stuck into a kind of thin cardboard envelope, just like those they use for freshly printed pictures. He snatched the whole pack out, curious of what he would see.

Tugging out the first image, Duncan was shocked to see what he just touched, his eyes widening of startle. He blinked a few times, not sure if that was really _it_. Another picture was out and the same type of scene was seen. On the other one, again it was similar. Though that would break Courtney's heart, he knew what he had to do about those negatives.

"Gwen, I think you should see this…"

* * *

Courtney's eyes slowly opened up, still disturbed by the low light of the room. Laying on the side of her body, she was facing the back door of the condominium room leading to the deck where she was formerly taking a sunbath. From her spot, she could see all the fireworks popping into the starry sky of Jamaica. She sat up and smiled, it was beautiful.

She checked the hour, it was in the 7:30-ish. She had slept a total of five hours, she had been tired as hell according to her guesses. She sure missed a lot of things that happened in the day, but she mostly wondered why Justin didn't wake her up.

"Good evening, my beautiful half."Justin came out nowhere wearing an unbuttoned shirt and an evening pair of pants, startling her and make her wonder where he was going. She turned around quickly, giving him the opportunity to peck a kiss on her smooth lips. Just as usual, it was amazing. She beamed, happy to see him but still a little stunned by her sudden long nap.

"Why didn't you wake me up?"She asked, combing her messy hair.

"You seemed so tired, I didn't want to interrupt you."He smiled, buttoning his white shirt up in front of the mirror installed in the room.

"Aw, thanks honey."She chirped. "But where are you going dressed like this?"

"To the casino."The fancy dressed man responded, checking his face to see if it was okay.

"I thought we were on vacation alone together…"

"I know, sweetheart."He smiled confidently, not seeming suspicious or pissed. "But tonight, I just felt like I'd let you recover since you haven't gotten a lot of sleep last night."He winked at her, making her blush of embarrassment and amusement.

"That's awesome from you."

"I know." Justin put on some perfume, probably Courtney's favorite on him, what caused her to take a deep smell of the fragrance. Irresistible, just like the first time he put it on. "I gotta go Court, I don't want the guys to wait too much time before I beat them all."

She smirked, as Justin leaned in to kiss her one last time before going out the room. A few seconds later, she could hear the entrance door slam shut.

She laid back on the bed, tired of that 'big' day she just lived. Every sensation she felt, every thought she had, every word she said, everything she desired. Her eyelids shut, readying herself to fall into a peaceful slumber.

Then she remembered, _Justin never dressed up so fancily just to go out to the casino…_

It was a lie.

* * *

**A/N: To Be Continued.**

**It's getting pretty boring to write into happiness and love. Haven't I already told you I don't like cheesiness? Well, when I write fluffily, it's cheesy... So, I guess next time will be better.**

**I'm not joking, next time will be violent. Prepare yourself for it, I'm serious.**

**Anyways, review.**


	7. Naturally

**A/N: Happy Tuesday everyone! I've passed a horrible week last week but this one seems to be my lucky one! My grades aren't excellent but still, I'm average. And... yeah. That's it.**

**I plan on update I Don't Have To Believe You this week... Well, I HAVE to update it or I'll forget. But, now I give you another chapter of that story :D... 7 already, it passed really fast! And I'm focusing only on that story because I truly wanna finish it before doing anything else.**

**And... A giant shout-out to Bella-Sk8er for writing a TxC one-shot for me! I just love that pairing and if you want to check the songfic, which is really worth to be read, you really should! Go! Anyways, thanks Claire, I really appreciate it =)**

**I'm looking forward to Halloween, I just LOVE candy parties! I love candy, period :P**

**Of all I've ever written, this is the most horrible scene I ever made up. Bloody, violent, harsh… I could have turned this into M but since it's not as much as something like True Blood, I kept it T. Other warning, there's one ENOURMOUS cliffhanger at the end. But that's all I'll say about it.**

**Have an amazing day!**

**

* * *

**

**Naturally**

March was coming to its end, finally when every Canadian thought it would never finish, giving them the hope for a good season they really needed. The temperature would start getting higher, as prices for winter articles would get lower, satisfying lucky new customers. The cherry on top, bikinis would start showing in a few months, letting all girls sink into pools and have fun in the wondrous season of summer.

Back from her very own early 'summer', Courtney was unpacking her excessively heavy luggage when she felt a pair of hand wrapping around her waist. She smiled, putting her hands on the muscular ones holding her, inclining her neck to the right to let him kiss her neck softly, just like he always used to do.

Would you believe her if she said she wasn't mad?

Would you believe her if she said she was still in love?

Would you believe her if she said she believed in herself?

Well, prepare yourself for the lie because that was exactly what was happening.

She sighed contently, feeling his soft breath hitting against her mocha skin while he whispered honeyed words to her, making her hear melt of that amount of sweet attention of his.

"Need help with this?"

"That would be nice."She told her adorable sweetheart, who didn't wait long to obey and help her unfolding her belongings. She still remembered about the casino thing, when Justin said he was apparently going to gambler that night but, for all she had by now, she really didn't feel like breaking the magic so soon.

Courtney sighed exhaustedly, leaving her husband taking care of her clothes and making her way to their loft kitchen. Trotting around the counter, she finally reached the little object she was looking for. The phone base was flashing 5 in red square-y numbers, informing her she had messages left in her inbox. She punched a metallic button right next to the caller ID.

A womanly voice talked first before it went to the point. The former C.I.T. then heard a familiar voice slightly irritating her going out the speakers and she expressly picked up, knowing what the subject was going to be about.

"_Hey Court, it's me Bridge. I know you surely don't want to talk to me or hear what I have to say since you're surely back from your vacation but I absolutely have to talk to you about J―"_

Tired of that continual ranting, Courtney ended up Bridgette's speech by hitting the 'delete' button. Hoping it wouldn't be another 'Hate on Justin' message kind, the married woman went to the next one.

"_Courtney, it's me again. I knew you'd delete the first note but―"_

The prep deleted it, stubborn as always. _He has changed, why can't she understand it, _she thought, outraged by Bridgette's attitude.

Predicting that the other three messages would again be her ex-best friend's junk on her husband, Courtney got rid of all three of them, by so making sure Justin wouldn't find them. Not that she thought perhaps he was able to hurt the surfer girl for saying shit on him, more that she was taking precautions in case he'd be mad at both of them. Especially since he told Courtney to stop seeing Bridgette since she apparently was sending bad signals to her.

Justin often tended to get insecure for her around people he didn't know well, even if it was Bridgette or some other high school old acquaintance. Maybe that was his way to tell her he cared about her, though most of the people didn't believe in those cloying words. Actually, everybody still wondered why she was always with him even if they all knew he wasn't that worthy of her. Courtney wondered too, but she wasn't strong enough to leave him as mentally than physically.

Thinking profoundly, she was caught off guard by Justin who came right behind her, slinging his tanned arms around her waist just like earlier. She smiled, letting him trail kisses down her jaw line to her collarbone. She smirked; she knew the method perfectly. He was only doing that when he wanted something.

"Courtney," He started on seraphic voice. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you and you should know how much I love you."

"I love you too Justin," She said on a lullaby-ish voice.

He kissed harder, as he correctly knew it was a real good turn-on to her. "I've thought of it on the plane and I think we're ready."

"Ready for what?"

"I want kids," He concluded, sucking on her neck on her sensible spot.

Her eyes widened. She did talk about kids with Bridgette a few weeks ago when the blonde went for a special visit but she clearly said she **wasn't **ready for the next step so soon. And the hardest was to imagine herself having a kid with the man that used to hit her not a long while ago. Even if it was a souvenir she truly didn't want to talk about anymore, it still stayed a fresh memory in her mind that surely wasn't going to be erased even in years.

Only one question was asked to herself; did she really want to take a risk and raise a family with a man she didn't completely trust?

She bit her lip. "Yeah, I guess that could be a great option." She mumbled, wishing he wouldn't hear.

"So, that means you're ready too?"Those words coming from his mouth almost sounded overexcited. Good or bad sign? She couldn't resist his childish blue eyed glare, begging her to say yes. Except that this time, the kid was pretty hot…

"I guess so…"

Justin made her twirl in place, catching her in a warm familiar embrace, so happy he could jump in place. "I love you Courtney, I love you so much!"

"I love you too Justin."She smiled, almost faking it.

"So," He started on a seductive voice, staring in her onyx eyes again while stroking softly her cheek. "I guess we could start 'creating' tonight… What do you think?"

She almost puked in her mouth because of the amount of disgust resting in her head.

"Yeah, why not?"

"Cool, I'll get us some romantic stuff for the ambiance and then, I will be ready for you. I will be back at six."

As her spouse disappeared in the principal hallway leading to the front door, Courtney could finally let escape the breath she had held for seconds or maybe minutes, but she still could barely breathe correctly.

A child with Justin Keller, one of the hottest male models in Canada. A child with Justin Keller, a man really hot. A child with Justin Keller.

All those possibilities sounded awesome, so why did she feel a huge ball in the stomach when she was considering it?

* * *

"That's revolting."

A few pictures held in her hand and the others resting on the kitchen table, the blonde was examining every little detail of the images she was seeing. One word was coming to her every time; disgusting. Geoff, Gwen and Duncan next to her, supporting all her comments and agreeing on certain points, Bridgette found really hard to believe what she was seeing.

"Are you sure you found this in _his _jacket?"She inquired, not taking her eyes off the images.

"Who else would take pictures like that?" Gwen said, a little sarcasm resting in her voice. "I swear we found this in his belongings, he did that, I'm sure."

"Dude, I knew Justin wasn't cool but I didn't see that one coming," Geoff claimed, feeling weird about what he was seeing, almost ready to throw up his lunch.

"It always feels this way first."The delinquent explained.

A silence was heard through the house, letting Bridgette the time to take a few delicate looks at the pictures. On the one she was presently glaring at, a woman was lying half naked on a satin bed, her body bruised at a few places. Beside those wounds, she seemed to be satisfied, showing one of those weird smiles people have after good hot sex. On another one, the woman is unconscious, probably asleep, but has a long deep red laceration on the leg. She seemed as peaceful as the previous one, but more in a deathly way. As the blonde flipped through, she could only see the same horrible image going on and on and on just like in a movie. It was odd, and really outrageous.

After a few minutes of quietness, Bridgette spoke out. "We have to tell the police."

"No."

Everyone turned to see Duncan, who was looking quietly at the other negatives on the table. Being the one who alerted everyone about Justin's misbehavior, it clearly was surprising everybody that he was objecting to those words. Blinking twice, Gwen decided to speak for Bridgette who was too busy gaping at Duncan's attitude.

"Why? I thought you wanted to help Courtney."

"I do want to help Courtney, more than anything else actually. But I'd rather give her one more choice. I want to show the truth before someone else tells her," He told everyone with confidence in his voice.

Bridgette spoke again, "Duncan, she won't listen to us, I left her three messages this morning and Geoff one. It didn't work, she j―"

"Let me try then. She surely hates me more than anyone of you but at least she listens to me. Just let me try, for this once. After, if she's as stubborn, we'll contact the police."He claimed courageously, meeting everyone's startled eyes.

Bridgette didn't find anything more discourage him from trying to do something else, as she had to admit he was right. Justin being a celebrity, if a scandal like this came to the public's ears, Courtney's reputation would be dirtied which would really embarrass her. Even if that was risky, Duncan had a valid point here.

"You guys are okay with this?"The surfer chick asked the others, who nodded in agreement. Bridgette then turned her attention back to him to close the plan up. "Tonight, you will go to her apartment. Justin will surely be meeting his agent so Courtney will surely be alone. Talk to her, try to convince her and do whatever is needed to make her listen."

"Will do," Duncan confirmed, rewinding the scene in his head.

"We count on you, Dunk."Gwen finished, a preoccupied glare plastered on her face.

An enormous responsibility was confided to him, and he would try not to fail. For Courtney, for _them._

* * *

It was about seven o'clock when Justin came back from his shopping spree for the romantic and magical evening they were supposedly going to pass together, him and his wife. Courtney, being in her bedroom, had been waiting for him a long time ago but not for what he thought it was for. Seeing his spouse wasn't in the kitchen as she'd usually be, he walked to the room and slowly pushed the door, approaching a woman sitting at the edge of the bed. He smiled; she smelled amazingly good and her hair was half done but she wasn't dressed in lacy clothing like she used to. Actually, she was just wearing a brown hoodie with the colors of her college's football team and jeans, casual like everyday.

"Hey, sorry for being late of an hour honey, I just had a lot of stuff to buy before coming here."

She didn't respond. She didn't even make a move. She more seemed to be holding something in her hands, like she was staring at it without even caring about his words. He took a few steps forward, almost touching the bed.

"I bought some candles and a few of those red soaps shaped in forms of hearts, just like you like them. Maybe we could take a―"

"You cheated on me."

Courtney's words startled him, breaking her long living silence. He put his bag on the floor, trying to walk forward and figure out what was happening.

"Excuse me?"He began softly.

"You cheated on me." Courtney repeated, louder than before.

Thinking he was mistaken or it was just a joke, Justin chuckled, kneeling on the bed and trying to reach her back to massage her shoulders, which always relaxed her.

"Ah come on Courtney, how could you say this?"

When his hand nearly brushed her back, Courtney furiously got off the bed to face him, making him notice she had puffy eyes probably caused by crying. He didn't understand what happened though to make her feel so pissed about him. She looked witheringly at him, chucking a folded sheet of paper at him.

"And what's this Justin?"

The model picked up the item, unfolding it delicately to reveal a few red numbers resting on white. His cheery mood gone down, he found himself caught. Trapped with nothing to say.

"You lied to me, Justin."

"Honey, I can explain―"

"There's nothing to explain!"She yelled furiously, stomping out the room. Closely followed by a confused Justin, she kept talking madder and madder after every word. "When you said we were going on vacation **alone**, I didn't think you meant only us, not another person stalking us close!"

"That's ridiculous!"He argued, denying everything.

"Don't try to fool me!"She shouted back, snatching the phone receiver on the base. Her orbs wide and angry, flames in her glare, she was ready to tell him what she heard earlier in the day.

"Checking my messages this afternoon, I've noticed a certain 'Lilly' called saying she had a wonderful night back last week. She said, and I quote 'she'd love to see you again for another night'."

"Courtney, she's just―"

"I can't believe I trusted you."Her voice trailed off from a huffy tone to a desperate one, bypassing him to storm to the kitchen. "I chased away the only true friends I ever had, I've given up on my law career, I told my best friend to go away just to stick up for you and your lies. Your fucking lies! I tried to believe in you, I tried to believe in us but I shouldn't have because you're worth shit and you'll stay shit Justin Keller."

Those words hurt, but the handsome man wasn't brought down so easily. Trying again, he stepped one more time toward his now crying wife and tried to take her hand softly. "Courtney, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you. I want to have kids with you and―"

"Kids?" Courtney lifted her eyes to him, giving him an enraged silence glare behind her tears. Her mascara being lowly taken off by the water and leaving dirty dark stains under her eyes, she couldn't even move a little while speaking courageously to her husband, who was seeing her like he never did before. "There is no question I have kids with you anymore. I don't want my kids to have a father so heartless, egoistical and temperamental like you. I want to **divorce**."

At these words, Justin felt all his word collapse drastically right in front of his eyes. All he had built for two years now, what he had loved, what he had realized and what he had started faded tragically. For good and forever, it would all disappear and leave him alone. _Alone all by himself._ Courtney was all he ever had, the best part of him was her and only her. If he came to lose her, what would happen next?

He couldn't let her destroy this. He couldn't let her take everything he ever had just like this. She _belonged _to him, and not to anyone else than him! Divorcing wasn't fair to him, and he couldn't stand Courtney being happy without him. Not this time, not ever.

Justin, feeling the rage boiling in his veins, stomped toward her, glaring at her furiously. Though all his previous promises, she couldn't help but not foresee what would come next.

Justin's calloused hands went around her neck, tightening the grip. He was scaring her, purposely, and he liked it. A nasty game of power, a might that only him had in hands. Something he had she didn't and never would own. Her breath shortened but she could still breathe even if it was really hard.

"You're not leaving me so fast."He said menacingly, gripping more and more just like a predator would seize his prey.

Without anymore warning, Justin threw the housewife on the kitchen counter, causing her to hit her head on it. An average sized wound was formed on the back of her head.

"Say you're sorry!"He commanded.

"No." Tired of that headstrongness, the model seized Courtney's wrists so tight they turned purplish blue, scaring her purposely while she tried to get up on her feet. He could see fear in her glare but she wasn't going to give up so soon, not after all she lived.

"SAY YOU'RE FUCKING SORRY!"

"I said I wouldn't!" She concluded stubbornly, resting her forearm on the stained counter for support.

That was enough, enough of the kindness toward her. She had to learn who was controlling here, the real master of the situation. She was just a mere useless piece of nothingness in the game only he could manage to play. Vile, dangerous, cheating, fearful… Mighty.

Having a huge force concentrating in him, Justin's hands clenched stronger around her arms, as Courtney felt like she was about to faint from that weight used on her. Pressure was used on her, and she barely managed to control her respiration. The model, seeming more pissed than he ever was, used his whole bodily might and threw the already weak petite brunette on the floor, letting her hit her shoulder on the highly placed counter. It didn't seem to have dislocated even with all the force he had employed. Courtney allowed herself to drop and lay on the ground, feeling exhausted and really lame and feeble for not fighting back her husband again. Tears formed behind her eyes but she couldn't cry the pain out, it hurt so badly no one could ever know how much. But when Justin asked her to apologize again, she still had the energy to mumble a no to him, which enraged him once more.

Justin brought his slightly to the back and made it shockingly hit Courtney's stomach, who was lying on her side. She spit out some blood, unable to keep it all inside anymore. The eye candy, feeling some anger still stuck inside him, kicked another time to make a pool of the red liquid come out through his spouse's lips, and even seemed to take pleasure out of it. Her hurt noises died down, even if she tried to bad to scream, and when opened widely her eyes for one second, she rapidly closed seeing blood was all over her. She was done. She was giving up. Courtney closed her eyelids slowly, tears softly streaming out her eyes until they dried quickly and naturally.

Justin stopped his massacre, figuring out his wife wasn't moving anymore. He moved closer to her, seeing her face paling seconds to seconds. She seemed peaceful, like she was sleeping a few years ago. And quiet, like she had never said anything before. Like nothing happened.

He touched his hair and his skin, then her heart. And he started to panic. She wasn't herself anymore, she wasn't anyone else. She wasn't there.

"Courtney," He started softly.

She wasn't there. And it seemed like she would never be anymore.

He… He killed her.

* * *

**A/N: CLIFFY! And I had warned you. God, it was hard to do this. And I had a huge argument with myself on if rather or not I should stop the chapter here... My lazy and mysterious sides won :) See you next time until the next chapter **

**Peace out**

**~FTPCYN or Kim**


	8. Darling

**A/N: Hello everyone, I'm sorry for the delay of... One month but I got busy. A lot of things happened let's say, and I'm preparing for Halloween! I'm taking care of myself and I just realize today, 6 freaking months are left before my birthday :DD I'm sooo happy :3**

**For the delay, I got tired of the wait, and the suspense... It wasn't fun anymore. Here is the awaited chapter, folks :)**

**Also, this is a filler chapter, for the first and only time. I think I may add one more chappie for this story because... there is a LOT missing.**

**And finally, this chapter isn't as long as it seems. It's because, since this is the eighth chapter, I have the huge honour to introduce you... MY NEW STORIES! Yep, I have nine projects awaiting to be chosen but I have to choose only 2-3 to write so... I NEED YOUR OPINION! What you have to do is simple;**

**1. At the end of this chapter, when you leave your review, read BEFORE the nine story choices I give you.**

**2. Choose at least one (max. 3-4) you'd LOVE me to write**

**3. Leave a review _or _vote in my new poll on my profile... Or do both if you REALLY want it :D**

**4. Leave your review =3**

**Anyway, enjoy and pass an amazing day guys! Thanks for all the reviews, faves, alerts and all, YOU are the reason for this story to live! You're honest, nice, kind, sincere, peaceful, beautiful, heartful... A thousand words could decribe how I feel about you but only three will be okay; I LOVE YOU! Thank you being here and supporting me, even when I'm brought down and think I suck. You are the best!**

**

* * *

**

**Darling**

His firm muscular arms were fixed around her waist, preventing her petite body to fall off his grip because of the bed sheets he had wrapped her in, as he walked determinedly through the inground parking lot of the building. He looked around a couple times to see if anyone was following him or if the recorders were on him. Luckily, if there were any cameras, they would think his wife was sound asleep deduced from the position she was caught in, clearing him from any accusations if he was suspected. The model tried to remain calm though his heart was racing restlessly in his chest, sweat drops running down his forehead and his hands shaking while standing still on the prep's corpse.

Justin finally sighed in relief when he caught the sight of his black luxurious Porsche sat on its usual parking spot, and reached for his keys in his back pocket. Time was flying, and the young man didn't have too much time before the sunrise, when every suspicion would come out and accuse him. Without anymore hesitation, Justin opened the passenger seat door and slid the lifeless Courtney into it, taking care to fasten the seatbelt before getting into his own seat.

Before starting the car, he looked at her once more. She didn't seem dead, she just seemed sleeping, and that was exactly what he wanted it to look like. He wanted to be convinced she was just sleeping or faking, though he knew she wasn't.

And thinking he could have been fucking her that night...

Justin reached out to stroke her thigh, like he used to when she was still alive. He smiled; it was still a little warm. Her head was leaned against the window glass, it wasn't like she listened to him. It reminded the model about those long rides they used to do together to his mom's house back in college, especially the first time they went. He remembered his parents' reaction when they saw Courtney for the first time, and this was the same reaction he had the first time he noticed her too; what a beautiful woman. She was everything a man could look for, she was a real girl. Natural, sincere, unforgettable. Unfortunately, he could see in her eyes she wasn't happy. So much bitterness in one simple glare, so much complexity in a girl's heart... And then, when he asked her to marry him almost two years ago, he could see for the first time in years of knowledge of her. She was happy, happy that someone finally loved her for who she was, and he was happy to love her. Her love was, amongst all the good things he ever had, the best thing for him.

Justin looked to his right, and saw her eyes closed and her mouth shut tight. This facial expression was far from what he saw when he proposed her. Where had the love gone?

While driving on a long countryside road, Justin stroked her hair and tried to picture her shiny onyx eyes through her deadly eyelids staring at him with disappointment. And then, he saw her smile a bit.

The eye candy took her hand in his calloused one not being busy controlling the wheel, and for a second wished it could close on his grip. Alas, this didn't happen. Then, without knowing it, his lips started moving and engaged a conversation.

"You know darling, I'd give anything just to hear your laugh right now."

She didn't say anything, as disappointedly predicted by the baby blue eyed.

"I know you like that pet name; you've always did. It may seem crazy but I still feel you. Your smell, your smile, your attitude, you. I―I," He stammered, trying to hold back a tear. "I've truly loved you, Courtney. And I regret what happened. It's painful to know you used to be there this morning and then, nothing. I don't know what to say that could make you come back to me,"

Justin glanced at her again, and the evidence hit him; she was dead and she will ever be. He had ruined her life just because he didn't want his to be spoilt. In fact, he didn't think of her at all. He was just thinking about what the pres would say, what his family would tell him, what his friends would think of him... He was selfish and knew it.

He hated himself, but he hated her more. He hated her for everything she did, from asking for divorce to making him realize he was a monster. He hated her of cold blood, and he honestly didn't really give shit about her death. Actually, now she was gone, he could do anything he wanted. He was a free man.

But How to get rid of her?

The model pulled up brusquely when a cat jumped on the road. He cursed at the damned animal, it being a black one. Taking a deep breath and getting ready to speed again, Justin glanced out and saw an undeniable opportunity. He smirked and thank god for the luck, unfastening his seat belt and getting out the car within a second. He looked and turned around to see if there was anyone in the area and even shouted a few times in the night's cold April air. Satisfied, the mannequin got to the car, this time making his way to the passenger seat, and painfully pulled out the brunette's corpse of the expensive vehicle. Arranged in the same position as earlier, the man carried Courtney on his back like an old used sexual doll and made his way towards an entrance leading into the woods nearby. He tried to avoid the several branches hanging in front of him but failed many times by narrowing his eyes when twigs hit them. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case for Courtney who couldn't be spared of small cuts.

Justin stopped at an especial tall tree near a lake. Still holding on tight to his spouse, he suddenly felt anger boiling in his veins at the sight of little scriptures carved on the trunk. His anger than calmed down, replaced rapidly by a disgust smirk plastered on his tanned face. The shameless mannequin bowed down, dropping carelessly the twenty-three year old on the snowy ground of the forest. Straightening up again, Justin glared down at her coldly, and snorted, readying himself to speak to her for the last time in his life.

"I really didn't want to end it like that, and I'll love you to death, darling."

He spat on her in a disrespect sign, and walked away not bothering looking back, leaving his past behind. Sure, he would have to find an explanation to tell the media and a credible lie to tell her parents and even find a way to get rid of that motherfucking Duncan she had an affair with but it wasn't for so soon. She was dead, and that was better for everyone.

* * *

Duncan had his hands clenched firmly against the steering wheel, feeling pain and rage at the same time. Tears were streaming out his teal eyes though he had big difficulties to admit he was even crying. It was too hard to. It was difficult to even believe what he just saw, and for a second, he wished he wasn't there.

It could be easier not to care after all, would it? Just to be a normal guy who wakes up every morning to go work at a crappy place, have only to worry about what his girlfriend wants, when his boss would fire him and what he would do on Friday nights. But Duncan's life was far from usual, way different, though he wished it was as described.

He saw everything. From Justin's carriage to where the car stopped. And that's where he decided to stay.

The punk couldn't believe what he witnessed. And except the pain of his loss, nothing could keep him from charging at Justin with his car. And hit him.

And kill him just like the model killed the love of his life.

Duncan just came that night to talk to Courtney and see what they could do together to make Justin stop. And she would maybe listen to him this time, if only he had come earlier. Then, when the black haired was ready to step out the car when he saw the eye candy carrying on his back a silhouette similar to Courtney's. And he saw her brown locks waving in the still cold early spring air.

And felt his heart break in a second. His whole universe stuck in the arms of a sinful man and there was nothing he could do about it anymore.

Being lost in his bitter thoughts didn't stop him from seeing Justin exiting the woods, a smug expression stick on the face. He didn't seem sad, in contrary, he seemed... relieved. No more trouble, the perfect crime.

That was repealing, but typical of that asshole.

Then, tears began completely blurring the young man's vision, weakened by the scene he pictured. He could see Justin hitting her, Justin hating her, Justin telling her she was ugly, and her screams never heard. Most likely heard too late. If only he hadn't listened to her in first place and had called the police.

If so, tonight, she'd still be alive.

Duncan leaned on the steering wheel, closing his eyes and waiting for the pain to go away, though it never would. Parked as the car was, the model wouldn't for sure notice uts presence so it was safe to stay awhile and wait for him to leave so he could find Courtney. To tell her goodbye one last time.

He saw the Porsche leave on the muddy countryside road and sighed in relief. Slowly, Duncan pushed the car door and trotted sadly towards the woods where his love was probably buried. Trying to dry some tears, he wiped his eyes on his leather jacket sleeve while looking down at Justin's footsteps printed on the ground. Discouraged and saddened profoundly, He walked for minutes.

Until he heard a stiffened noise coming from a few meters away from him. Someone begging, suffering, on the verge of dying. Duncan could feel all those emotions expressed in two simple words.

"Help me."

The young man turned around and subtly looked for the voice hidden by the darkness of the night. Taking a chance, he walked forward and heard the repetitive words approaching, becoming louder and louder and louder. He forgot about Justin's steps; he followed his instincts.

A tan hand reached out on his way through the rows of foliages. Then brown locks.

And a woman.

The badass felt his heart had stopped beating. He thought he had died from the inside. But what he saw wasn't sad, in contrary it was amazing.

Duncan stepped closely to the half-dead woman, whose body had started to move painfully, and kneed down next to her. Her eyes being closed, he stuck his index and his middle finger together and pressed them against the skin of her neck. Hopefully, he felt her pulsation but it was beating abnormally fast. He then slid his warm hand up her face, comforting her logically just the way he was supposed to in this situation.

And tears suddenly stopped rolling down his cheeks when she spoke again.

"Duncan," The familiar brown haired whispered on a stiffen tone, slowly letting her eyelids open to see her saviour next to her.

And just hearing her warmed his heart up.

"You―You're not dead."That wasn't a question; it was a realisation.

Weak as the young lady was, she could only respond with a nod. He examined her for a second; dry blood was spread around her mouth and her clothes where as well painted with the same red liquid. Most of them were shredded and soaked by the snow lying on the ground.

Even in her condition, he found her as beautiful as the first day they met.

"Justin tried to―"Was all she could say before grunting, pained.

"I know, he tried to kill you, didn't he?"

She nodded again.

"That asshole," he murmured under his breath.

Noticing her inability to talk anymore, Duncan took the things up where she left and, this time without her opinion, decided to do what he was supposed to. The punk shoved his hand down his leather jacket's pocket and pulled out his phone, ready to dial the emergency number.

"What are you doing?" Courtney managed to yell despite she was hurting so bad.

"Calling 9-1-1. You surely have something broken."

"No!" She shrieked, her eyes widening brutally. Duncan looked down at her, not respecting what he told himself and listening to her.

"Why again, Courtney? You need help, and don't get me wrong on this one."

"I am not saying I don't need help, Duncan," She managed to sit up on the snow, her body aching to the result of the numerous kicks in the chest area she received. "I'm just saying that we cannot **call **an ambulance. They will recognize me, I'm Justin's _**wife**_."

"And?" He continued obliviously, making Courtney roll her eyes at his stupidity.

"They will contact Justin and this will be tomorrow's headline on **every** gossip magazines, and including the newspaper!"

"You worry more about your honour than your safety?"He snorted, revolted by the prep's words.

"I do **not **care about the tabloids, but I do care about Justin finding me and finishing his job."

There was Courtney's real intention.

"You're right," He grumbled, defeated.

"I'm always right."

Duncan smirked, glad to finally know that the true Courtney wasn't gone after all she's been through.

"I'll get you to the hospital," He reassured her, swinging carefully his arms around her and lifting her up to finally steady her in his strong arms. Trudging back through the forest, he could hear her moan in ail even when branches weren't hitting her face. Those sounds were awful, but at least she was alive.

They made it to the punk's car, all in a whole but Princess still aching badly. Duncan managed to slide her into the passenger seat, where she let herself drop because of how feeble her physic condition was. It was hard for him to see her this way, but he had no choice if he wanted her to stay. The grown man sat into the driver's seat, thrusting the key into the starter. He glared straight ahead while waiting for the car to completely start, not able to look at her.

"Where are we going?" Duncan simply asked.

She waited a few seconds before responding, letting him believe for this moment she was half dead. And she was, inside of her.

"Where the road will lead us."

On these words, he didn't wait for her to talk more, it was already enough. The car slowly started to move, rolling down the humpy and chaotic road. And it went faster, and faster, and further.

Like they would never come back.

* * *

**A/N: Story choices:**

**1. _TxG_  
****Title: Sweet Misery  
Summary:** "Tell me what the hell am I supposed to do to get you back?" He was right in front of her, his both knees on the ground, begging her in front of everyone. Gwen wasn't insensible to this, she was just over him.  
"Nothing. We're through."She said fullheartedly, walking away and not looking back with Duncan following. At this moment, he felt like he was going to die, truly. For the first time, despite all his usual cheerful words, he wondered why he should bother living if it was without her. _**Based on the song 'Breakeven' by The Script and by Kurt Cobain's death (R.I.P.)**_

2. _TxC_  
**The Right Wrongs  
Summary:** Courtney is with Duncan, Trent with Gwen. Duncan tells her he loves her, she freaks out and goes to Trent for comfort. They kiss accidentally. But later on, she realizes that friendship among them could be... more? And even starts having the wrong feelings for the right guy?  
Preface: **_What if the happy ending couldn't be found at the last page of the book?_**

3._AxH_  
**Make Me Want it  
Summary:** In an all-girl private academy, Heather is the manipulative queen bee. But... What if she meets a boy, from the boy academy next door, who happens to be way more controlling then she is... And he messes with her feelings? And she starts feeling... Love or lust for him?  
Will turn Mature. Inspired by the movie 'Lost and Delirious'

4. _AxH_  
**Paper Hearts  
Summary:** "You're a slut"Were all a boy ever told her to make her realize who she was. Who she was supposed to be and who she will ever be. Nothing more than a skank, and no one likes skanks. Giving up, Heather let herself be what everyone else expected her to be. But could one man, only one man, make her feel for once like a woman?  
Angst-y story.

5. _NxK_  
**Fake Lovers, Imaginary Friends  
Summary:** I was sitting on the dirty tiled floor of the girls' bathroom, my makeup ruined and spread all over my face, my hair like a mess and my cellphone drowning into the toilet's water. I was alone, for the first time in months, and I knew I would be for a long again, but I already predicted it and even looked for trouble, didn't I. That's why everybody loves a winner so nobody loves me, right? I'm Katie Andrews and this is how I played with fire.

6. _TxC_  
**Bad Reputations  
Summary:** When school days are over, Trent and Courtney reunite for the summer of their lifetime, far from their hometown and their other significants. No one knows them, and they just have each other to count on. In that corner of country, being a slut is immoral, as everywhere. And being a player is stupid. But when those two friends start falling for each other though they're still in couple, will that build them a nasty bad reputation?

7. _TxCxD_  
**My Other Other half  
Summary:** (In Courtney's P.O.V) I woke up this morning and looked to my right, seeing the man I've loved for so many years. And I didn't feel anything. No more sparks, no more happiness, no more urge to love him absolutely. As if what I've built in those last years had gone in a nigt, or a week? Or a month? What was wrong... I felt those feelings every time I thought or saw the guy next door.

8.(DxC) Girl Loves Boy, Boy Screws Up:  
Summary: "Okay..." Was the only thing I could say back three years ago, when a 13-year-old Courtney Harrington confessed me her feelings at the Halloween dance. I didn't know what to say, I didn't know what to do, I didn't know what to feel but al I knew was that I couldn't like her back. I wasn't allowed to, I was to popular for it. And she was not.  
And now, three years later, I look at the adorable young teenager she used to be and now at the beautiful 16 year old she is. And I can see what I've missed out on in so many years. The thing is, she doesn't return the feelings anymore.  
*This is inspired by a friend's story, a sad one though*

9. _NxK_  
**Shooting Stars Never Fly Alone**  
Summary: I looked up at the sky and sighed. I wondered what happened those last days to get me in that situation. First, when Sadie ditched me for the science project. Second, when my mom announced me she and my dad were going to divorce. Third, Heather, the school's Queen Bee, made me trip in front of everyone in the cafeteria. And then, I met the most amazing boy I've ever seen and I don't even know he's name or where he's from. I just know, in a halloween party, he was dressed as a knight. And the worst is there are maybe chances I never see him again...  
Fluffy NxK story  


******So yep, vote and be nice. Only one DxC story this time, but I WILL make it epic if it's picked. **

**Now, leave a review please =3**


	9. Beliefs

**A/N: Hey… It's been a while, uh? I know, I'm sorry for the wait but I had some death in my family. I don't want to talk about it. **

**But... A lot of things happened since the last chapter! First, some girl on dA called TotalDramaPrincess has drawn some fanart for my story! This really made my week guys :)**

**Also, I now have the results of the votes. Three stories were picked for the month of December. Details on them at the end.**

**Nooowww... Enjoy that chapter that took me a lot of time to write and sorry if I nearly scrapped the end. I really had to hurry since my brother was pissing me off to get on the computer and I have homework to get done.**

**Love you and thank you for everything! :D *hugs***

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**Beliefs**

Courtney's eyes slowly opened after a long nap, and were brutally hit by the strong morning sunlight of April. The young woman groaned, and realized she was sitting in the passenger seat in an uncomfortable position. While straightening up to reach an ideal posture, she felt her body aching unbearably due to the several cuts and wounds she received previous night. The smell of hot gasoline hitting her nose, she instantly peeked around and figured out where the odor came from.

A few meters away, a few cars were parked temporarily on gray asphalt, and some people were standing beside them, thrusting a handle into a little whole on their car. She tilted her head and peered up, a red panel flashed in 3D letters the words 'Gas Station'. Shifting again from her position, the awakened brunette looked around for a black haired smirking delinquent. And, nothing. Just a few people, sun and gas pumps.

Yes, again, it was too good to be true.

She dreamed everything that had happened, everything that had been said, everything that had been thought. Duncan wasn't her white knight, and he would never save her from a horrid dream with the man of her dreams. He surely had abandoned her here a few hours ago when she fell asleep, tired to be dragging her around since it wasn't worthy for him. _She would never be his._

When she was at verge of tears, Courtney heard the driver's door unlock and open, letting a black haired man slide in the passenger seat and position himself in front of the steering wheel. Mumbling a bitter string of unrepeatable insults while thrusting the key into the contact, the seething punk barely seemed to notice the girl's irreplaceable presence next to him. Courtney, not as her usual self, remained quiet, thinking maybe the best thing to do was minding her own business.

When he finally figured out she was here, he didn't ask her how she was going.

"Those assholes," Duncan growled, starting the car abruptly. "Willing to make me pay full price even if there's a promotion. What are the on?"

"What are you talking about?" Courtney piped up, feeling concerned of the boy's misfortune.

Looking to his right where the woman leaned against the window, her head covered with a few bandages and her hand hurt as well, Duncan had a flash. He remembered everything he had witnessed, everything he had heard, everything he had seen in the past weeks, and wondered why he was talking about a few bags of chips while the girl he loved just went through way worse than paying full price on an item.

It was definitely egoistic.

Ignoring her previous question, Duncan steadied his eyes on the road ahead of them. And she didn't insist on telling her what the problem was; she stuck her lips together and didn't add anything. That silence wasn't familiar to them, being used to yell at each other at every occasion they had, but it was best as it was.

It was familiarly strange quietness.

* * *

The model paced around the master room of his incredibly expensive and luxurious loft, perspiring liters of water from the forehead to the armpits. Though he woke up three hours ago, his hair looked like a total mess and he was didn't even shower. Throwing clothes carelessly into a brown leather luggage, Justin reminded himself of what happened the last night. From the roses studded on the floor to the divorce threat and finally Courtney's last minutes of life. And he didn't feel as alright as he was back twelve hours ago.

This loss made his slumber really hard to proceed. Not only guilty he felt, he also felt lonely. No more of this warm presence always next to him every night he had passed in his bed, cuddling him, and making him believe everything would be alright. Even on the worst days of his life, this presence was here for him. Perhaps it was the best thing of his life.

This presence of a certain lady he had loved for so many years and had lost in the time of a night.

When Justin awoke that morning, he knew he couldn't bear it anymore. No woman could ever stand in for Courtney, either for the heavenly perfectness she provided. The guilt was slowly gnawing him to bones and he knew it was his fault if everything happened. He just couldn't admit it, it was too difficult.

Just thinking about how he would never see her again was horrid.

The man was determined; he had to get away. Have a week with someone else, to get used to her absence and find a credible thing to tell the medias about her death. Something like a kidnapping or a suicide or a disappearance. That would easily be swallowed by the whole continent and the model agency. Then he would meet another girl, causing all the attention to turn to her, then he would marry her and everyone would forget about Courtney in the space of six months. Finally, all is well that ends well.

Well, except for her parents but they loved him and trusted him as their son, so they would believe it.

Justin sighed in relief. There was nothing more to worry about. All he had to do now was to pay someone to get rid of any proof against him and… He was safe! Now he just had to relax in another woman's arms while waiting patiently for the job to be done and clear him out of any trouble.

Again, according to his beliefs, life would be flawless.

Or could it be?

* * *

The engine stopped slowly in front of an old small building aside an unknown road they had been rolling on for an hour. Duncan looked up, seeing they were right under a square panel flashing 'motel' on a night blue background, then he looked to his left, and saw his adorable princess collapsed into the passenger seat. The way she was sound asleep made her look more innocent than she usually was, and even made him forget a little about all that had happened in the last months of years. Like nothing he knew about happened.

She looked just like his perfect bossy princess back in his teenage years.

The punk chuckled at the thought that ironically, a few years ago, Courtney seemed to be the strongest woman you'd ever seen. She was mighty, fearless, smart, and powerful. Everyone feared her, and she wasn't scared of anyone. She controlled her life and all that came around… well at least, had been in the 18 years before she met Justin.

Slowly, as told by Bridgette, when the blue eyed eye candy penetrated her life, the former CIT changed day after day, word after word, kiss after kiss. She started to distance more and more from her family, calling and seeing her dear relatives from once a week to once a month and finally once a year. Courtney then started pushing her friends away, being brainwashed daily by her unfaithful husband. She wasn't answering her mails anymore, responding to phone calls or going out with close girl friends. And no wonder about the guy friends. Justin forced her to stay at home and only talk to business men or people in the fashion industry. He imposed himself as her only friend; an egoistic false friend that would betray her anytime he would find better. Justin told her so many times he was everything she ever had that she became used to the idea, and was persuaded he was her whole life. Luckily, Bridgette and Geoff were still here, convinced it wasn't the truth though they didn't know about what was happening inside the house.

Preoccupied by his bittersweet thoughts, Duncan didn't notice the brunette had quietly awakened next to him, though her eyelids were shut.

"Are you going to keep looking at me this way all night long or you're gonna get us in?"

"Oh sorry," He mumbled, flushing red at Princess's remark.

The punk stepped out of the car and quickly walked to the passenger side, opening the door and getting his lady out in his arms, shuffled in the same position as last night. Trying to steady himself on the still fresh ice, Duncan carried her to the motel room, gentleman as he was.

Dropped onto a comfy bed, Courtney had no choice to open her eyes and growled, pained by Duncan's careless attitude toward her hurt body. Princess took a look at the room, it was way poorer than she was used to. Some old cheap flowered wallpaper was stuck on the walls, a brown cracked leather loveseat was installed in the corner of the room right next to a small brown television box and only one window was hidden behind grey 80's curtain out some horrid fashion catalogue. There was an odd little oven in the next room that had an 'out of order' rectangular note stuck on and, behind an open door, was a small bathroom looking as clean as a toilet seat. In a short summary, this must have been the worst motel room Courtney had ever seen. Especially since a few weeks ago, she went to the chicest hotel she had ever seen. Contrary to beliefs, a woman like her would never be found in those conditions, but this time the brunette was begging to differ.

"We couldn't go somewhere better," Duncan piped up, noticing the mix of disgust and disappointment in her glare. "If we had gone to a five-star-hotel, Justin would surely have found us because of the paparazzi."

"Smart." Courtney said smoothly, what caused the pierced man to smirk smugly.

His grin rapidly faded when he looked around and saw only a bed, on what his princess was laying in. He then took a look at the loveseat, and figured out what he had left to do. Taking his coat off, he walked toward the small sofa.

"Duncan," Courtney called his name, smiling decently. "You don't have to sleep into… this. We can share the same bed, you know?"

Duncan raised his pierced eyebrow, surprised by her proposition and realizing what he had dreamed of for years was finally coming true. Well… Dreaming as dreaming perversely…

"We're adults, aren't we? We're able to sleep in the same bed without doing anything, you know…"

He nodded, agreeing and instantly making his way toward the bed, readying to take place next to the girl of his dream.

"Yep, I know." He smiled again, confident.

Taking his shoes off, Duncan slid under the thick duvet and turned off the light, not daring kissing Courtney before lying down completely. He shuffled to face the ceiling, feeling that missing piece next to him finally getting his puzzle complete. This piece being Courtney. He beamed and slowly let his blue eyes close.

"Duncan?" Courtney whispered softly, not in slumber yet.

"What?"

"How is it, after all those years of dating, we never did _it_?" She asked shyly but curiously.

"What 'it'?" Duncan questioned, not figuring out what she meant.

She scoffed. "Well, you know. It… As in having sex…"

His eyes got really wide… So much he could almost picture them gleaming blue in the darkness of the room. Why Courtney, the usual wise and prude girl he knew, was asking a question concerning something like sex?

Perhaps she was… as wanting it as he was… ?

"Why are you asking me?" Duncan asked, not responding her question. "You were the one who wanted to wait…"

Courtney sighed. "Yeah, you're right. I… I wanted to wait."

Then, the punk waited and didn't hear anything more. Total silence. He figured out maybe she was sound asleep next to him, since she hadn't since Justin's aggression on her.

And he didn't say anything; he knew her life was hard enough right now. No need to bother her with his selfish needs. They would not have sex now, maybe not tomorrow, maybe not this week. They would maybe not even get together so soon, as he had been dreaming of for months and maybe years.

And it was okay this way.

* * *

**Stories chosen; Fake Lovers, Imaginary Friends... My Other Other Half & Girl Likes Boy, Boy Screws Up! Thank you so much for all the votes, everything was counted and thank you for reviewing even after nine freaking long chapters.**

**I'll try to update soon :D**


	10. Runaways

A/N: *facepalm* dang it, I HATE JUSTIN'S PARTS! It's soooo hard to do :( Well, I hope it isn't too bad… or I hope it's at least understandable in most part.

**Anyways, FINALLY! Second to last chapter :D Two left and I'm sooo over this! :) I was looking forward to its end actually, cuz now I can focus on other stories **

**Ok so, a little warning here; there is a little scene further between Courtney and Duncan that is partly sexual. I didn't feel like doing a lemon, and if I did, I was scared I'd ruin the story because it will suck. **

**So yeaah, don't forget to leave a review, please :3**

* * *

**Runaways**

The baby blue eyed model awoke at the sound of humming birds perched in the tree a few meters away from the window in his room. It was early in the morning, six more precisely, and he had trouble sleeping since the unfortunate incident with his wife… Or preferably ex-wife since this one was no longer alive.

It had been a week now, and the Swallow birds next to his window were the sign that spring was going full swing. Spring, he remembered, was the favourite season of Courtney. Not as most of the people, she wasn't a big fan of summer, but loved the lightness of the first equinox of the year. At the end of June, when spring would leave to let the hot season take place, Justin and she had a tradition. On the eve of summer, they would sit on the balcony and open a bottle of red wine, watching firework shoot across the sky in celebration. It was way more romantic than it seemed, and the widower found hard to think the upcoming one would be the first summer eve he would pass without her.

He never felt that free of a man.

Justin rested his head on his pillow, smiling satisfyingly. Life would be way more beautiful since that bitch was out of is way. Well, of course, hiding her murder would be a difficult task, but knowing Justin; he would get through this without much problems. And that was why today, he had taken a day off to fix these.

10 000 bucks to make the souvenir of Courtney Keller disappear to most of the people on earth; this prize was not too much when we thought of this well. In fact, this was a gift the killer the model had hired was doing him. It was a really good investment, just to officialise his newfound celibacy.

To sum it up in Charles Dederich's words, today was the first day of the rest of his life. And he actually planned on not screwing up the rest.

The model looked to his right, reading 2pm on the clock; it was pretty late in the morning, but not really for a hot single gentleman like him. Stretching out, he got out of bed, making his way towards the kitchen.

The luxurious loft was vacuous from left to right, and nothing alive seemed in sight. The couple used to have a cat many months ago, but unthankfully the little beast ran away, disgraceful of all Courtney and he did for it. Justin never really liked cat, but that experience proved him he was right about those shameless animals.

Arrived in the earlier-said room, the tan man started the coffee maker, in target to serve himself a cup or two of it. While the liquid was in preparation, he took advantage of this short free time to take a look at the mails left from yesterday, whose he didn't check yet because his lack of free time the last day. Anyways, he expected to see bills and invitations to beauty product company's parties.

Holding a few envelopes in his hands, he went through all of them until one in particular, addressed to Courtney. Evaluating that since she was dead, he was in right to read her mails, Justin shredded the envelope on the side, letting out an unpaid credit card bill come out. Sighing, he was telling himself that now _he _would be the one paying what she spent money on when his eyes stopped at one line on the letter.

It was a transaction. Yes, the whole letter was filled with paid items, but this one was particular. It was clearly indicated, with no mistakes on the date or the cost, that _someone _used Courtney's credit card to take gas six days ago, at 8 in the morning, _exactly _the date after the night Justin left her corpse in the woods.

This couldn't be possible. This _couldn't_. Courtney couldn't have gotten her credit stolen, it was right in her wallet. But… thinking of it, she must have had her wallet on her when he beat her to death. And if anyone stole it from her, Justin didn't think they wouldn't have report it to the police. And if they didn't, how the heck would those people find out where she was?

All ways leaded to one conclusion; Courtney used it.

"But she was dead!"Justin exclaimed, banging his fists against the marble kitchen counter. "She wasn't even moving the whole way from here house to the forest, which is 20 km away from here. How could she possibly do this?

Then, it popped into the model's head; he never checked her respiration.

Feeling a dumb and his face reddening of anger, Justin looked down to the bill again and noticed the last transaction that had been done was in a motel in Montreal named of an odd French label.

And this is where he was going. He was going to finish the job he started.

* * *

The brunette reached her arms out, stretching them, feeling wrecked by the night she just passed. Actually, having dozed off at 10 o'clock the evening before, she had spent 14 hours sleeping, recovering slowly from her injuries, which led her to 10 in the morning, according to the city of Montreal's hour. Duncan's truck had driven them here, in that big metropolis where Courtney had never gone before, which meant this was the perfect hiding spot if Justin found the truth and tried to chase them.

Thinking of the punk, the princess reached out again to her right and realised nobody was lying next to her. Again, the punk had disappeared. She was about to panic when she noticed a note on the nightstand. Snatching it quickly, she read it.

_**Gone grabbing some food, don't worry about me. Be back at noon.  
~Duncan**_

At these few words, Courtney felt her blood pressure increase rising dangerously. Affirmatively, Duncan said he would be back, and she did not have to worry, but just thinking he was out when they were both in such condition made her stress out. Yes, Duncan was a strong man; but being hefty does not mean people like him can get out of any heavy trouble.

In fact, the prep wasn't scared of him being in danger; she feared _losing _him again. Duncan had saved her life; he had saved her from Justin and even herself, even if he wasn't present when Justin supposedly beat her to death. And that didn't matter, because he was about to do it, and this meant the world to her.

He was his saviour, and she needed a saviour; someone that would look out after her and watch her sleep at night. Someone that knew about her past but wasn't commenting it. Someone that knew what she needed.

And then she realised he was more to her than anything Justin could have ever promised her. From a mansion located in the south of Belgium, to loving her for the rest of his life. Of all the things Justin said to her, none of them assured her completely peace and security, which was what she needed more than anything else that was valued at over a thousand bucks. Now, even if he was gone for a while, she knew at least nothing more could happen to her.

And that she had missed him in these last years. She had missed him more than anything else in the world. Her heart was still scarred, but no more shattered, and Courtney knew that, deep in her soul, she had forgiven what the punk did to her a long while ago.

The Princess's heart bounced in her chest when she heard the motel room door being quickly unlocked and forced, letting in a black haired muscular man. Relieved, Courtney sat up on bed, combing her brown locks to seem at least 'presentable' to the young man.

"Morning sunshine," Duncan greeted, wiggling his eyebrows while putting a few plastic bags on the old wooden dresser.

"Where have you gone?" Courtney asked sleepily, narrowing her eyes at the punk.

"Told you; grabbing some food."

"Don't you know how dangerous this is Duncan?" She yelled at him, changing from the sleeping beauty to the furious tiger. "We're runaways, we cannot be seen! Imagine if some paparazzi see me here and alert Justin, I'll be―"

"Courtney," He cut her off, sitting at the edge of the bed. "I am the one that went out, and people don't know me. I'm an ordinary boy, whereas you're the famous mannequin's wife, which means _you _are the one people will be looking for, not me."

Thinking of it deeply, what Duncan was saying was right; next to her, Duncan was nobody, so nobody would suspect him being with a woman supposed to be deceased. This was the perfect plan; and that would keep her alive for long enough to find a solution.

"That's right," Courtney agreed, too tired to even try finding some hidden vice. The brunette then swiveled her head to the right, spotting the mysteriously filled bags of groceries. "I'm starving, what did you get?"

"Hmmm…" Duncan thought, digging into the bag. "Cookies, bread, bags of chips, water bottles, ham, coffee, beer―"

"BEER?" Courtney gasped, repulsed that the punk thought about drinking when they were in such troubles.

"What? I need something to relax me while you're freaking out like a friggen head-less chicken."

Courtney rolled her onyx eyes. "I do not freak out like a chicken."

The man smirked, what truly annoyed the hell out of her.

"Anyways, what about a sandwich?" Duncan proposed. "Don't move, I'm taking care of everything."

As the punk demanded, Courtney stayed in bed, even though she felt like she should help. Unfortunately for her, when she tried to get out of her comfy prison, Duncan forced her to remain in place, causing her to ground and cuss uncontrollably in her head. But, though she felt she was being inactive and she hated it, the former CIT knew this was better for her. Her body required rest to mend, as her brains demanded a break to function properly.

As she was watching Duncan cooking some weird sandwich with mayonnaise, ham and a sort of bread she couldn't tell, she knew one thing; she was in peace. She was grateful to one person in particular.

"Duncan?" She called him, getting half his attention as his piercing blue eyes scanned her all over, presumably to see if she was okay. "Thank you. Thank you for everything, it's―it's really appreciated."

He smiled smugly but genuinely, "You're welcome, Princess."

The brown haired woman smiled, her whole soul being warmed up by one simple word; Princess. Truth was, it wasn't a word anymore; it was an identity. It was her identity. At anytime she heard this word coming out of Duncan's mouth, she could relate only one other word to this signification: home.

It was not peace. It was home. Her home.

* * *

Justin was driving fast on the road between Ontario and Quebec, slightly exceeding the speed limit but hoping no cop would catch him. He was in fury, and felt like he was going to punch the crap out of anyone. It was now 8 in the afternoon, and he had been rolling for an hour and a half now. What took him so long before going out the loft? Making up a plan to beat the crap out of Courtney, even murder her and than find a way not to be accused.

At this hour of the day and this time of the season, there were not a lot of people crowing the roads, which meant he could speed as much as he wanted without hurting anyone or getting in trouble, nevertheless honestly, he wouldn't mind at all if it allowed him to calm off a little.

He was sick, sick of her lies and her prissy attitude. He had done everything for her, and all she was doing was whining and bitching over and over again. She was just thinking of her and only herself, not even considering his feelings towards her and about their relationship. Courtney got everything she wanted, but she was still unhappy.

But, Justin tried everything to make her change her attitude. He bought her clothes and an expensive car, visited places all around the world, took her on amazing cruises… God, he was about to purchase a star for her!

Sometimes, he told himself that, perhaps if he 'disciplined' her, it was because he thought he wouldn't be able to tame Courtney enough for her to stay. Except the money, nothing kept her by his side. He wanted her to belong to him, he truly wanted it, and he was crazy about her, but with the big lie she'd given him by letting him believe she died, it proved him she didn't care. And she couldn't care less about his feelings more than this; that was the ultimate point. His hate towards her had grown enough, hatred that was formerly now as 'love', and Justin knew what was left for him to do.

He had to eliminate her. He had to eliminate the pain.

Get rid of all of this **definitely**.

If the dark brown haired man had calculated well, he would arrive to Montreal in 8 hours, meet some of his 'contacts' so they'd do the job for him and then would probably pop up to the casino, just to celebrate his victory and his new start as a free man.

He smirked; this was the perfect plan.

* * *

The old TV screen of the motel room flashed re-runs of lame sitcoms dating of early 2000's, what caused Duncan to sigh at the content but think of the ridicule of the situation. They had to face it; they were caught. They couldn't call the police because Courtney feared they wouldn't find any proof against Justin, which was clearly ridiculous. They also couldn't tell anyone where they were since Courtney was on track of many of Justin's "men".

They had a plan though; once the folly Justin was port of finished, and that Duncan would be sure no one would retrace them, they would drive to the nearest police station and denounce Justin, by so opening a scandal about the famously known top-model. Courtney would then gain the respect she deserved, and Justin would go to the place he was supposed to go first; jail.

This project wasn't the best one Duncan had thought of, and it was the reason why Courtney wasn't aware of it yet, but it was all they had now. Truthfully, the only thing Duncan really wanted was to keep Courtney alive by any way possible.

Why this? The answer is a simple one; love. The punk felt like he would die if he came to lose her again, because she was all that was left for him to live. The only reason why he should stay alive.

He wished she would realize it.

"This is so dopy," Courtney snapped, her eyes fixed on the TV. "The guy is a real man-whore and then, when he finally realizes he's in love with one girl in particular, whose heart he kept breaking, he expects her to forgive him already?"

"Everybody makes mistakes." He half-smiled, gripping the remote control.

"Oh please, don't quote me a Hannah Montana song!" She joked. "Could we watch something else? I feel like I'm going to punch the screen to that dumbass show."

"No." Duncan said playfully, taking away the remote control far so it was out of Courtney's reach.

"Come on! Give me this!" Courtney yelled, clutching his arms so she could get control. As the young man tried to keep it in hand, she climbed over him and sat on his lap, her arms trying really hard to snatch the item from his hands. She was getting red of anger, but at the same time was laughing like a moron at the situation. Her laugh was sweet, a little high pitched, but still really sweet like it was freshly out of his memory. Duncan managed to get her off and got on her fragile body, steadying her by holding her hands without hurting her, so she couldn't move. Suddenly, his finger accidently hit the off button, turning the screen into black, and the room even darker since they were watching TV in the dark.

Their eyes were shining in the darkness, as they stared into each other's orbs without saying a word. It was flawless, totally flawless.

"You can kiss me if you want to." Courtney whispered though they were alone in the room.

Without anymore invitation from the prep, Duncan slowly leaned in, closing his eyes and letting his chapped lips crushing onto Courtney's blissful pink ones. And he kissed her, kissed her with more passion than he ever had. The last time he pressed his lips against her was the night of their prom, right before he cheated on her with Gwen. If he ever knew what would happen after, he would have never done this to her. He knew it for sure now; he loved her.

His lips traveled sensually to her jaw line, kissing tenderly her soft tan skin and taking a scent of her hypnotizing perfume. She didn't smell odd designer fragrance, she smelled her own perfume. The one she had always naturally worn since he knew her. That made him even more lustful for her.

"Duncan," Courtney moaned, like a signal alarm telling him to continue. Duncan obeyed, nibbling her earlobes, causing her to shiver uncontrollably. His hands then traveled to her waist, tucking at the bottom of her shirt, and then rapidly pulling it off. She found herself almost naked in front of him, wearing only a simple black bra and her jeans. In an attempt to make her feel comfortable, the punk let her hands grab his grey shirt and taking it off, revealing manly abs under it. Courtney took the time to touch them before feeling his warm hands cup her face, kissing her and laying her on the bed.

They removed each other's pieces of clothing more and more until there was none. And they osculated, touched, cuddled, and kissed each other for hours. It never happened before, but it was perfect.

It was their first time.

* * *

The lovebirds awoke up at an unexpected small knock on the door, at 3 in the morning.

"Who's this?" Courtney asked Duncan, swiftly putting her shirt, sneakers and jeans back on.

"It must be the motel's manager," He assumed, imitating Courtney's actions."I think he said he wanted to talk to me about the bill yesterday." Walking towards the door, he combed his hair to be at least presentable, put his sneakers on so he would be ready if the man wanted to take him out somewhere.

"He's kinda early." The prep claimed, glancing at the clock rested on the nightstand. Her lover shrugged, "You know, those guys don't like to wait for some cash."

The door was knocked a second time, this time harshly, what slightly pissed off the punk. "I'm coming, relax dude!" He said, thinking of the word 'bitch' to describe the man's attitude. Turning the doorknob, he mumbled some apologies, "Yeah, man, sorry if I didn't pay yesterday, I forgot to, but I promise―"

Duncan lifted his eyes to see a tall tan man standing in front of him, fire in the eyes, ready to assassinate even though he had a huge smile plastered on the face. He recognized every of his features; his cold orbs, his muscular arms, his lips only to pronounce evil words. Duncan only had two single words to say before the model violently punched him.

"Run Courtney!"

* * *

**A/N: TBC. Please review.**


	11. Dark Twisted Games

**A/N: FINALLY. I DID IT!**

**Next chapter; THE LAST ONE! So that will mean I'll be DONE with this story :D. It's been a while I have updated this though :S Now, gotta catch up on my other stories :O**

**Well... nothing much to say. Except that I'm doing good. and also, thank you so much for the reviews! :D**

**btw I totally screwed some parts of this... sorry. :/**

**Now, ENJOYYYYYY! **

* * *

**Dark Twisted Games**

Her brown hair flowed in the cold air as she tried to direct herself through the really dark night. Tears were streaming out her shiny onyx eyes, blurring her perfect vision and her heartbeat was getting faster and faster. She didn't know where she was going, she didn't know when she would be completely safe, she didn't know exactly why she ran away, but she at least knew one thing; she was running.

It killed her so much to know that the man she loved was perhaps fighting to death for her at this moment that she practically felt her heart bleeding inside her chest. That was her moment, that was their moment and she knew that if she gave up so soon, she would give away her life to the man that made a living hell of it.

It wasn't time for abandoning; knowing she would soon taste freedom put her in a het up state.

If only she knew where she was running.

Courtney, judging she was far enough to take a short break, stopped a few seconds, feeling like she had covered a thousand miles. And then, for the first time in her few perfect days of heaven, the princess felt herself caught in hell; a dark twisted game Justin changed the rules of everyday. She just knew her destiny was to burn down in flames, and she didn't know anymore why she kept fighting.

If everything happens for a reason, this mad situation was definitely fate.

Her body being intruded on by weakness, Courtney knew she couldn't make it. It was too much for her.

And she stayed at the same place for what seemed like hours.

* * *

Duncan's hands gripped firmly Justin's neck, trying his best to prevent the model from breathing. Though his face was red due to the amount of blood gathered in his facial veins, the tanned man kept struggling harder and harder against the punk's strength, strategizing on how he would get rid of Courtney later.

Yeah, this surprise visit kinda shook the two lovers up, and also contradicted his plans of hiring people to kill his ex-wife, but it was totally done on purpose. Actually, on the way to Montreal, Justin thought about a few things to calm up his angst against Courtney, and figured out that even though he would assuredly keep his business man reputation clean, letting Courtney being killed by strangers couldn't satisfy his needs. He needed something live, something he could feel the emotions of.

He needed to assassinate her by himself.

Being convinced of this, Justin cancelled his employee's work and drove straight up to Courtney's motel, not feeling the need of sleep until this duty was accomplished. Parked in the lot, he opened the trunk of his gilded automobile, smiled widely and closed it, not getting anything out of it. Justin then walked to the motel room, his hands balled dup into solid fists.

He never thought Duncan would be so dumb that he would open the door to a perfect stranger when it's freaking 3 am in the morning. Truthfully, Justin never thought Duncan would be in there, with Courtney, and he would be dressing up while opening the door.

The equation was simple. Duncan + Courtney + messy hair and clothes barely put on = sex.

Not only she had lied to him about her death, but also she cheated on him with another man, which involved sexual intercourse. That made his fury increase uncontrollably, causing him to punch the punk in the face and try to beat him up, just while Courtney ran out by the back door.

Unfortunately, Duncan could take over him and push him against the wall, causing items hung on the wall to fall off and hit his head, making it bleed. Justin, being furious, fought back by grabbing the punk's collar and pinning him against the wall nearby, knocking his hard fist against the man's pierced face. Duncan's lips were cut, and he had a long throbbing red line crossing his head, but that didn't stop him from struggling. He couldn't give up; Courtney needed her freedom.

The punk's hands could make it to the model's soft neck, covering it and pressing the best way he could, shortening the bad husband's breath. His face became red, it being a sign of suffocation, as Duncan gripped it tighter and stronger, his teeth gritted. Feeling powerless, Justin felt himself losing consciousness slowly, offering himself to death, but then realised he had his both hands free.

The model grabbed the nearest item possible resting on a plane counter-length surface, which happened to be a porcelain lamp, and attempted to strike Duncan with it and targeting the head, shattering the pear-shaped object into sharp pieces. Duncan couldn't take the pain anymore, as his head dripped millilitres of blood, and felt his body slowly being taken over by gravity and fall on the ground, fainted.

Justin looked down at the man; he knew that Duncan wouldn't make it without help since he was losing too much blood. It was like he actually killed him, and that left him pretty content.

But the most important part was still in liberty.

* * *

The night temperature was below the 10 degrees Celsius, but that didn't stop the runaway from covering meters and meters in the chilly breeze, causing her skin to get goose bumps. Courtney was still running through the woods while desperately wishing Duncan was okay. For one of the few times in her life, she felt egoistic. Egoistic for leaving the love of her life fighting for her.

Courtney's body suddenly reacted at those last few words by slowing the pace of her run.

_The love of my life?_

She couldn't believe those words. It was normal since she never really thought or spoke them, not even with her ex-husband. A sixteen-year-old version of her would have probably thought of these words they were about her boyfriend, but a grown-up adult that went through rough times like hers wouldn't believe in the power of these words anymore. But curiously Courtney felt her heart beating harder and harder when she thought of them now.

So perhaps she did mean it.

Courtney smiled through dried tears; it was the first time she ever loved and felt loved back. And this act was done by a man she thought she would never be able to trust again, not by the one she trusted but betrayed her many times. Duncan was her first boyfriend, and she hoped he would be the last one.

He was the one and he always had been.

And she always knew it from the bottom of her fragile heart.

Courtney passed so much time remaining in place that she didn't notice an important detail; she was still tracked. All she could do before witnessing a darker black out in front of her eyes was hearing a deafening tyre screeching noises and footsteps running to her while she meekly got up to runaway before realising it was too late. Firm hands grabbed aggressively her waist, catching her into a forced embrace, before those manly first introduced hands folded her eyes and mouth so she couldn't scream or even see what was happening.

All Courtney could do was to figure one single thing out; Justin had found her.

* * *

Duncan's eyes fluttered, bringing him back to the life he thought he had lost a few minutes ago, when Justin knocked him out. He felt his head pumping hard and hurting as hell. Noticing he was on a hard and plane surface, Duncan attempted to get up to run after Justin, using his hands for support. One of them landed on a thick liquid resting on the floor, what left Duncan wondering what the heck it was.

He lifted his head off the ground and peeked to his right, and at this especial moment thought he was dead. In his whole life, he had never witnessed that much blood, especially when it came out of his very own body. Even in all the fights Duncan had been caught in since his juvenile center years, he had never seen anyone bleed that much after a quarrel. That was it; with all the blood he was losing; he wouldn't be able to save Courtney before it was too late.

He was destined to die. End of the story.

Before panic got to him, Duncan's first reflex was to bring his hand to the side of his head and softly touch his wound, feeling the blood stamp on his white fingers and palm. The simple touch of it hurt, what caused the former delinquent to wince in pain. Out of curiosity, Duncan's finger kept sliding down the injury although it was hurting badly, and noticed the line was kind of thin.

So thin it was almost _impossible _for it to pour out so much blood.

The punk quickly sat up from his position, looking down to the blood puddle that he used to be lying down in. Right next to it was a cherry flavoured juice bottle he had bought at the convenient store two days ago, that had the same deep red color as blood, and had the cap removed since Courtney was drinking out of it when Justin violently knocked the door earlier.

What was spread on the floor wasn't blood; it was cherry juice. At this moment, Duncan felt fucking dumb for thinking he was dying. It was paranoia; simple paranoia.

Without wasting anymore time, Duncan completely got up and ran to the door; he wouldn't let his princess down this time.

* * *

Courtney's body was ill, but it still managed to trudge for twenty minutes through the melting snow covering some humid earth, her arm squeezed by Justin's careless hand, what would sure leave a mark. The sun would be rising in an hour, which increased her chances of being found, but since she had no idea where the model was leading her to, it was almost possible to believe in a miracle. Her eyes were blinded by a black long fabric, her mouth gagged with thick scotch tape and it was probable that she had blood dripping on her forehead. She didn't know what Justin was doing, all she could hear was him grunting every time he hit a branch, but she herself couldn't dare complaining when one of them stroke her face, even though it caused some bleeding.

She was not scared anymore of what would happen; she knew it deep in her soul that she would die. She was rather sad, sad that she wouldn't be able to say goodbye to everyone she loved before leaving. Well, Courtney wasn't oblivious, she knew death couldn't be worked this way, but at least when you know you're about to die, you should get the chance to do so, right?

And Duncan… at this hour, the princess knew that Justin had killed him, what broke her heart more than you could think. She wasn't selfish because she tried not to think of it, the woman actually was selfless because she would love at this especial moment to _die _instead of living again without him. Of course, her ex-husband would make her wish come true.

Her train of thoughts were brutally interrupted when Justin gripped her fragile arm tighter and threw her on the floor, taking quickly the tape off her mouth and her blind-folder off her puffy eyes. She could quickly notice they were on a small uninhabited piece of waste ground, similar as the place where he had dropped her when he thought he had killed her first. The piece of fabric formerly covering his ex-wife's eyes still in his calloused hands, he slightly tapped it but quickly frowned his perfectly shaped eyebrows, throwing it on the floor.

"Have you been crying, you cunt?" he asked heartlessly, looking straight into Courtney's wet orbs.

The girl kneeing on the ground, the brunette's voice was calm but shaky, "Y-Yes."

Justin chuckled obnoxiously, "I hope it was for your life, not for that motherfucker you've been cheating on me with."

Even though those words were seriously maddening her inside, Courtney sucked in a deep breath, waiting for Justin to do what he was going to do.

Suddenly, the model shoved his hand into his jeans back pocket and pulled out a black metal gun out of it, positioning so the gun could point at Courtney's forehead. She chewed her lip nervously, and figuring out it was the end, let a sincere tear roll down her cold cheek, thinking of Duncan for the last time. Justin noticed the water streaming out her eyes, but narrowed his eyes at her while speaking again for the last time.

"I can't believe you did that to me, Courtney. I just cannot believe I'm going to do this." His words seemed genuine, but died to roll her eyes at the ridicule of the situation. "On our wedding day, I swore to you I'd love you forever, till death separates us… I held my promise. Death will effectively separate us." Justin placed slowly his finger on the trigger, ready to pull it, until he heard the sound of Courtney's sweet voice ask a simple question.

"Why are you doing this?"

Justin's left eyebrow went up, "Excuse me, miss?"

"Why are you doing all of this? It has been a year now you've been trying to control me like no one ever did before. Heck, even my parents never held me back the way you did." The prep said courageously, glaring at him with fire in the eyes in the whole process.

"I **never **tried to control you, Courtney." The model claimed, feeling his pride being hurt.

"Yes you did!" She screamed helplessly. "You were always trying to tell me what to do, what to think, what to say… A real Nazi! You thought you'd lose me, you thought I'd runaway, you know you did Justin!"

"Shut up!" Justin yelled at her, ready to pull the trigger out of frustration.

"But you know what? I would never go away, Justin." Courtney told him honestly, hysterical tears coming out. "I _loved _you, I did of all my heart, and you didn't need to hold me in hostage to keep me close. I had promised you; _forever and always._"

Justin was close to tears. What Courtney told him was the total truth; he knew it from the bottom of his heart. He wondered the same thing; why the hell did he do this? She loved her, and always had… Forever and always.

His head came back from the clouds when he remembered one important detail; _Duncan. _

The bastard that ruined his marriage.

"How about Duncan then? I saw you freaking gave yourself to him while we were still married! Is that what you call love, Courtney?"

Courtney had had enough. Not only Justin was disrespecting her, but also, he accused her of cheating while _he _had fooled around with other women so many times when they were still married.

That asshole needed to learn that Courtney Harrington wasn't a wimp.

"Yeah, you're right. I cheated on you… Right after you savagely assassinated me and left me for dead in the woods. Right after you had sex with **seven **different women in 6 months, and three of them were done in **our **bed. Right after you assaulted me at multiple times leaving on me bruises, a broken arm and some broken ribs. Right after you made me bleed at places on my body I'd never imagine blood could pour out of them. Right after you kept me from seeing my best friends and confined me in our loft."

She took one last breath before continuing, feeling able to finally stand up for herself, "Right after you broke my heart and I found someone to fix it back."

Justin just tasted his own medicine, but in a different way. This time, Courtney didn't hit him, she just stroke the weakest and most sensible part of his anatomy: his heart.

Justin couldn't hold the tears back anymore, as the anger boiled in his veins. His hands were placed firmly on the gun, and he now knew what was left for him to do.

"I hope you have fun with your boyfriend in hell. Farewell, Courtney."

The princess slowly shut her eyes, closing them completely, and let tears stream out her eyes, rolling uncontrollably down her pink cheeks. It was the very end, but thinking about it, living in a world without the man she loved was the worst thing that could happen to her. She sucked in a last deep breath before hearing a loud gunshot.

She didn't feel anything, but thought perhaps being shut in the brains didn't feel as bad as it was in the movies. The brunette could perfectly picture a hole being pierced by a bullet through her head, signifying the end of her awfully short life. She waited a few seconds, seconds turning into minutes and minutes feeling like hours, until she realised her body hadn't fallen to the ground yet.

And that she was still able to properly think.

Daring the impossible, Courtney slowly opened her wet onyx eyes, and noticed only trees and vegetations were around her. If hell or heaven were like this, it looked exactly the same way as where she was before. She took a few more glances before figuring out she was exactly at the same place.

Courtney took a look at the sky; it was a perfect shade of cerulean, just as it normally is when the sun is about to completely rise. Another tear came out her eye: she was alive.

The princess looked around until her eyes stopped on the ground, at the sight of a corpse, what froze her blood and caused her eyes to widen. Lying on the earth, in a pool of blood, was Justin, the gun still slightly gripped in his hand and a distinctive hole through his head, going from the left side to the right side. Courtney couldn't believe her eyes, but had no choice to; the evidence was right under her eyes.

Justin had committed suicide.

Courtney's jaw was shaking; not only because the cold air was refrigerating her, but also because this scene was terrifying. She felt guilty, but at the same time, not at all. Her emotions were all confusing and she absolutely didn't know what to think anymore.

She was sure of one thing; this was the saddest thing she had witnessed.

Courtney stayed in place until she heard footsteps coming fast from behind, but didn't even flinch at them.

"Courtney?" Duncan's husky voice exclaimed right before figuring out what was happening. He couldn't believe it either, but managed to slowly step towards his lover, embracing her into a tight embrace.

They remained quiet for what seemed like hours. Well, until the sun absolutely rose. His hands was safely wrapped around hers, letting her cry in his arms. After a few moments of silence, Duncan softly spoke to her.

"It's over, Princess."

* * *

**;) Next chapter: Epilogue. **

**Leave a review :) **

**~FeelingThePullCallYourName :D**


	12. Epilogue: Words to a Former Lover

**A/N: I. Am. Finally. Done. **

**This is actually the first story I ever finish on this site, others having made me lost interest in them. I must admit, I'm really proud. This story helped me through a lot of things, as personal than public. Thank you to those who stayed throughout the end to actually see what happens, and to others that stopped reading halfway through, I think I wanna thank you too; you made me actually want to improve just to be able to impress you later on. **

**And those who kept cheering me up at each chapter, the biggest thank you is for you. For giving me the courage to finish this. To actually finish something. This one is for you, guys. You keep a big place in my heart.**

**And with regrets, I have to announce you that I'm leaving the FFN family. I will still review the few stories I'm following that TRULLY get updated, but I won't post anything on here anymore, well... I'll only update what already is on here... Until they're finished. And then it's over. I will still be on DeviantArt, but I won't focus on the Total Drama Series anymore... I am sorry, guys, but I've been missing out on many things lately, and I don't want this to happen again.**

**Thank you, and I hope you won't hate me after this. Also, I hope I gave this an appropriate ending. If not, hate me as you want, but I'm sorry.**

* * *

**Epilogue: **

**Words to a Former Lover**

_A year later._

Courtney sat down facing the kitchen table, a cup of green tea and a pen next to her. Her tan and perfectly manicured hands held a sheet of paper, on what was written in a magnificent handwriting many words, more precisely a letter. She had read and read the words one by one over a thousand times before deciding she was done. Making sure it would be perfect, the prep laid the white paper on the table, reading it carefully and feeling like tearing up at each word.

She meant what she had written, she totally meant it.

Starting by the date, Courtney read attentively.

_June 12, 2010_

_Dear Justin,_

_People would find me totally odd if they found out I was writing this to a dead person, yet many would have considered this as necrophilia since I'm widowed and you were my husband… But that would have been if I still loved you. _

_Justin, I have been wondering a lot since you committed suicide in that woods in Montreal, but I only have one true question for you… why did you do this? Was it because you couldn't handle me falling out of love with you? Was it because you didn't understand my reasons? Was it because you loved me? Or…. Was it because you didn't love yourself? _

_Let's start by the beginning, which was four years ago when we got married. That day, when I walked down the aisle, I could see the spark in your eyes, so why wouldn't you see mine? I was in love with you, Justin, and you knew it… So why did you start hurting me? After a lot of thinking, I came to one plausible conclusion; you were scared of losing me. So scared you thought that controlling my life was the best way to keep me beside you. If you truly believed in my love, Justin, you knew it would have been eternal. Have I ever lied to you before?_

_Duncan was not a mistake. If you would have been there that night, Duncan would NEVER have dared coming. That was your fault. And you know what? I don't regret anything. Duncan saved me from you and somehow from myself. I had lost interest into living, and I had too much pride to even leave you… and I was scared also. These few days I had passed with Duncan, while you thought I was deceased, were the best ones that I had ever lived since you started losing your head. He showed me life, he showed me love, he showed me that life was a gift, and I couldn't let you ruin this. _

_He also showed me that I still had feelings for him._

_No, that I was in love with him. _

_I believe everything happens for a reason… And even if we tried, fate decided Duncan and I weren't done yet. And if he hadn't cheated on me in first place, you wouldn't have happened. _

_Even if I didn't love you the way I was supposed to, I still believe you shouldn't have killed yourself. I couldn't be the one, I just couldn't… but it never meant someone else couldn't have been. There was a life after me, and I wish I hadn't been the end of you. I wish we didn't break each other's heart and had fixed our problem in a friendly way._

_Even after all you did to me, I still can't manage to hate you. You needed help, Justin… And I was too blind to notice this. You are a beautiful person, and I wish I was not the only woman to witness of your beauty. _

_I wish you were alive after all. I wish you had been lucky like me and had found your true other half._

_Sadly, the only peace you will ever witness now is an eternal slumber six feet underground. _

_I guess everything happens for a reason, again. Perhaps that is better for you._

_Rest in peace, my former love._

_~Courtney _

* * *

A tear rolled down Courtney's pinkish cheek while she folded the letter and slipped it into an envelope. She then opened the patio door and went outside in the backyard, where a wide fire was bursting into a trashcan, letting smoke escape from the heat. Courtney slowly walked towards the hot space, her letter in hand and her hair flowing, blown by the spring wind. She took a deep breath, put a sincere kiss on the envelope and dropped the folded piece of paper on the flames.

As the prep waited but didn't notice the time passing by, her well-thought letter started darkening as flames burned it and shredded it into small pieces. Sparks flew in the air, and her words got erased one by one by the fire. She sent another kiss to the letter and looked up to the deep blue sky, mesmerized by the beauty of it.

She whispered behind her tears, "This one is for you, honey."

Courtney walked back to the house, her nightmares behind her but her dreams still right ahead. She was free, so was Justin.

And she was ready to give all her love to the person that really deserved it now.

* * *

Bridgette was standing in one of the rooms of the church, fixing her hair one last time before the big moment. She worn a red peony flower around her wrist, which perfectly matched her crimson strapless ruched dress. Her usual ponytail had been replaced with a chic bun that made her come out of her usual mother status and reveal the woman that had been hidden inside. Bridgette was hard to recognize, and even Geoff would say this.

Her eyes were taken off her mirror when she noticed that there was a newspaper laid on the table next to her. On the front page, as headline of the day, was written in big bold capital letters 'Fans still can't forget'. Right under, there was a picture of the most ignoramus man on earth, his douchebaggish fake smile next to his name: Justin Keller.

Bridgette, disgusted, almost spitted on the newspaper, revolted by her sight and about what she read. According to the article, it had been over a year that Justin committed suicide, and still, his 'fans' couldn't make their grief and weren't satisfied with the autopsy that had been practiced on his body. Of course, even though Courtney had told the press about Justin's violent tendencies, the world couldn't believe she was right. To them, she was 'the bitch that tried to ruin his life'. Although, Courtney never complained about this; she just wanted to live her life.

"I can't fucking believe they still love him!" Bridgette yelled, furious. "That asshole almost killed you, Court."

Courtney, behind a changing stall, just deeply breathed while talking calmly to her best friend. "It's their choice, Bridge. Even though Justin has done bad things, you must admit he was one of the greatest models of Canada."

"Tell me what is difficult about posing behind a lens. I can do that anytime!" Bridgette said stubbornly, getting rid of the idiotic newspaper.

"Well, I think you have to be photogenic, and have certain 'chemistry' with the camera. You have to seem confident at least."

Bridgette snorted, "Bullshit."

At the sound of footsteps coming her way, Bridgette turned around to see Courtney peeking out the stall and walking toward her, her eyes shining like fireworks. Her umber locks were curled on her shoulder, and we could easily notice almost all her scars had healed, though some were still visible. The prep's white dress trailed behind her back, causing her to smile slightly.

"The wounds couldn't go, even with the make up," Courtney said sweetly, looking into Bridgette's hazel orbs.

"These are the scars of a survivor; they aren't meant to mend," Bridgette grinned, proud of her friend and thinking of her story.

Courtney blushed lightly, causing Bridgette to move aside so she can take a look at herself in the mirror. Thinking profoundly, Princess looked up and down, unsure before asking a question to her long time best friend.

"Do I look pretty?"

The blonde stepped closer to her, sliding her arm between Courtney's waist and forearm, "No. You are beautiful."

The two girls smiled, content. It was time to go.

* * *

The bride slowly walked down the aisle of the church. Soft music was played by the organ, and she could spot that some of her former high school friends were sitting in the room, and even her parents were located in the front row, whose she had lost contact with a long time ago. Gwen was here too, whom she couldn't help smiling at, which was gratefully returned by the goth.

When her eyes stopped scanning the room, she found herself looking at him. He was wearing a black tux and had his hair shaped in a faux-hawk, what she could notice was his signature look. His seal eyes were only on her, as she was the most amazing thing on earth.

At this especial moment, Courtney felt beautiful. She wasn't just taking the compliment; she was living it.

Her bridal march over, Courtney stepped beside Bridgette, who was her witness, the priest and Duncan who was next to Geoff. Her eyes were still locked into his, and her head was stuck in the clouds for a brief moment when her train of thoughts interrupted her.

A train of memories actually. From their first kiss to their first time having sex. It wasn't a story; they had made history. Their history.

"Dearly Beloved," The preacher started nicely, getting the attention from everyone but her. "we are gathered here today in the presence of God and these witnesses, to join Courtney and Duncan in matrimony, which is commended to be honorable among all men; and therefore – is not by any – to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly – but reverently, discreetly, advisedly and solemnly. Into this holy estate these two persons present now come to be joined. If any person can show just cause why they may not be joined together – let them speak now or forever hold their peace."

As no one said anything, Courtney kept deeply thinking about her past. Who would have known, six years ago, that she was going to marry the man that had cheated on her? And even more surprisingly, who would have thought two years ago that she would have been falsely killed by her ex-husband and then run away from him? This situation was complex, yet simple. Everything was already planned ahead, by fate and love.

Duncan and Courtney, forever.

The brunette had been lost deeply for so much time that she didn't notice the ceremony was almost over and that she had answered almost everything without thinking; her heart already knew what she wanted. Duncan was the only one, and he always had been.

Courtney had never been the kind of girl that believed in soul mates… But she guessed he was the only exception.

"By the power vested in me by the Province of Ontario, I now pronounce you husband and wife." The preacher finally says, overwhelming her and Duncan with love. "You may kiss your wife."

They didn't wait anymore, and they couldn't either.

Courtney thought one last time how this started; by a simple ring at her door while Justin was out cheating on her. After all, she must admit she was thanking god everyday for making Justin cheat on her that night. If he didn't, she wouldn't have met the man Duncan had become. The punk wasn't perfect, but he was real. He saved her more than once, and she didn't beg to differ that he would again in the future.

The weather was 25 degrees celcius, and there was a light breeze flowing outside the church. It may not have been the happiest ending, but it was still a happy ending. With a possible ever after... And this was way better than anything she had expected before.

And they kissed.

* * *

**A/N: For the last time ever for this story, please review. :)**


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